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SERMONS 


ON 


VARIOUS   SUBJECTS,  CltfEFLY   PRACTICAL, 


BY  SAMUEL  PORTER  WILLIAMS, 

LATE     PASTOR     OF    THE    FIRST    PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH    IN 
NEWBURYPORT,     MASS. 


TOGETHER    WITH    A    SKETCH 


THE  AUTHORS  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER. 


SALEM : 

PRINTED    AT    THE    ESSKX    REGISTER    OFFICE. 

1827. 


District  of  Massachusetts,  to  wit : 

DISTRICT    CLERK'S    OFFICE. 

BE  it  remembered,  that  on  the  second  day  of  June,  A.  D.  1827,  in  the 
fifty-first  year  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  of  America,  WIL- 
LIAM WILLIAMS,  of  said  district,  has  deposited  in  this  office  the  title 
of  a  book,  the  right  whereof  he  claims  as  proprietor,  in  the  words  following, 
to  wit : —  . 

"  Sermons  on  Various  Subjects,  Chiefly  Practical.  By  SAMUEL  POR- 
TER WILLIAMS,  late  Pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  New- 
buryport,  Mass.  Together  with  a  Sketch  of  the  Author's  Life  and  Char- 
acter." 

In  conformity  to  the  act  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  entitled, 
"  An  act  for  the  encouragement  of  learning,  by  securing  the  copies  of  maps, 
charts  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of  such  copies,  during  the 
times  therein  mentioned  :"  and  also  to  an  act  entitled,  "An  act  supplemen- 
tary to  an  act,  entitled,  An  act  for  the  encouragement  of  learning,  by  secur- 
ing the  copies  of  maps,  charts,  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of 
such  copies  during  the  times  herein  mentioned  ;  and  extending  the  benefits 
thereof  to  the  arts  of  designing,  engraving  and  etching  historical,  and  other 
prints." 

JNO.W.DAVIS,p^i*'Sd 


W.  PALFRAV,  JR.  AND  J.  CHAPMAN,  SALEM. 


ADVERTISEMENT. 


— &&&— 

THE  reader  of  these  Discourses  should  remem- 
ber that  they  are  posthumous  5  and  therefore  writ- 
ten without  the  remotest  prospect  of  publication. 
Every  one  acquainted  with  literary  labors,  knows 
that  an  Author  is  desirous  to  give  his  productions 
the  finishing  stroke ;  the  last  polish  of  the  file ; 
without  which  they  can  hardly  be  considered  as 
specimens  of  his  doctrinal  sentiments  or  his  abili- 
ties. In  selecting  these  Sermons  from  a  very  large 
mass,  (a  monument  of  the  Author's  industry)  we 
have  prescribed  to  ourselves  these  rules  : — we  have 
endeavoured  to  select  those  subjects,  not  exhaust- 
ed by  previous  writers  5  to  present  truths,  which, 
if  not  absolutely  original,  need  to  be  more  tho- 
roughly and  solemnly  recommended  to  the  reader's 
notice  ;  and  we  have  had  some  reference  likewise 
to  the  Author's  genius  and  manner.  His  style  is 
redundant  and  flowing,  full  of  amplification  and 
illustrations  ;  and  on  themes  which  needed  this  he 
was  peculiarly  excellent.  Doctrinal  subjects  have 
been  avoided ;  not  because  the  writer  was  not  bold 
in  avowing  his  sentiments,  but  because  the  Divines 
of  New  England  have  been  abundant  in  discus- 
sions of  this  kind.  We  have  considered  the  wants 
of  the  church,  and  endeavored,  in  some  measure  at 
least,  to  meet  them.  These  principles  have  gov- 
erned us  in  the  selection  ;  and  they  are  here  stat- 


IV  ADVERTISEMENT. 

ed,  because  they  account  for  the  miscellaneous 
character,  and  immethodical  arrangement  of  the 
volume. 

Let  the  reader  remember  that  this  volume  is  the 
preaching  of  the  dead.  The  tomb  is  now  the 
Preacher's  pulpit,  and  his  audience  are  those  who 
are  hastening  to  the  tomb.  All  praise  or  censure, 
for  faults  or  merits  merely  literary,  are  now  to  him 
empty  sounds.  But  a  tear  of  penitence  dropped 
on  these  pages,  or  a  desire  for  christian  improve- 
ment begotten  by  their  perusal,  may  increase  his 
felicity  even  in  the  realms  of  bliss. 

LEONARD  WITH1NGTON, 
WILLIAM  WILLIAMS. 

Salem,  June  1,  1827\ 


CONTENTS. 

Biographical  Sketch  of  the  Author.  ix 

SERMON  I. 

A  Compendium  of  the  Gospel. 
Mark  xvi.  15. — Preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature.  1 

SERMON  II. 

Estimate  of  the  World's  Morality. 
Mark  x.  21. — Jesus  beholding  him,   loved  him;  and 
said  unto  him,  One  thing  thou  lackest.  .  .  18 

SERMON  III. 

Obedience  Essential  to  Salvation. 

Revelation  xxii.  14. — Blessed  are  they  that  do  his 
commandments,  that  they  may  have  right  to  the  tree  of 
life,   and  may  enter  in  through  the  gates  into  the  city.     27 

SERMON  IV. 

Experimental  Religion  Vindicated. 
Psalm  lxvi.   16. —  Come   and  hear,   all   ye   that  fear 
God,  and  I  ivill  declare   what  he  hath  done  for  my 
soul 42 

SERMON  V. 

Every  Man's  Business. 
1  Thessalonians   iv.    11. — But  we  beseech  you,  breth- 
ren, that   ye   increase   more  and  more,  and   that  ye 
study  to  be  quiet,  and  to   do  your  own    business,  and 
to  work  with  your  own  hands,  as  we  commanded  you.     57 


vi  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  VI. 

A  Funeral  Sermon  on  the  Living. 
Psalm  xlix.    17. —  When  he  dieth  he  shall  carry  noth- 
ing away  ;  his  glory  shall  not  descend  after  him.       .       69 

SERMON  VII. 

Christian  Diligence. 
Hebrews   vi.  11,  12. — And  we   desire — that  ye  be  not 
slothful,  but  followers  of  them  ivho  through  faith  and 
patience  inherit  the  promises.         .        ' .         .         .       81 

SERMON  VIII. 

Modesty  of  Apparel. 

1  Timothy  ii.  8,  9. — /  will — that  women  adorn  them- 
selves in  modest  apparel,  with  shame-facedness  and 
sobriety.  ...  .          .  .         .  .96 

SERMON  IX. 

The  Duty  of  Confessing  Christ. 
Matthew   x.  32,  33. —  Whosoever  therefore  shall  con- 
fess me  before  men,  him  will  I  confess  also  before  my 
Father    which  is  in  heaven.      But  whosoever   shall 
deny  me  before  men,   him  will  I  also  deny  before  my  ** 
Father  which  is  in  heaven.      .  .  .  ..         116 

SERMON  X. 

The  Christian  Race. 

Hebrews  xti.  1. —  Wherefore,  seeing  we  also  are  com- 
passed about  with  so  great  a  cloud  of  witnesses,  let  us 
lay  aside  every  weight,  and  the  sin  ivhich  doth  so  easily 
beset  us,  and  let  us  run  with  patience  the  race  that  is 
set  before  us,  looking  unto  Jesus.         .       -  .         .  1 32 


CONTENTS.  vii 

SERMON  XI. 

The  Christian  Pilgrim. 

Psalm  xxxix.  12. — For  I  am  a  stranger  ivith  thee,  and 
a  sojourner,  as  all  my  fathers  were.  .  .  ..     140 

SERMON  XII. 

The  only  proper  object  of  Solicitude. 

Philippians  iv.  5,  6,  7. — Be  careful  for  nothing  :  but 
in  every  thing,  by  prayer  and  supplication,  ivith 
thanksgiving,  let  your  requests  be  made  known  unto 
God  ;  and,  the  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  all  under- 
standing, shall  keep  your  hearts  and  minds  through 
Christ  Jesus.  .  .  .  .  .  1G3 

SERMON  XIII. 

Christian  Exultation. 

Galatians  vi.  14. — But  God  forbid  that  1  should 
glory,  save  in  the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  by 
whom  the  world  is  crucified  unto  me,  and  I  unto  the 
world.  ........     177 

SERMON  XIV. 

The  Mount  of  Refuge. 

Genesis  xix.  17. — Escape  for  thy  life — look  not  be- 
hind thee — neither  tarry  thou  in  all  the  plain.  Es- 
cape  to  the  mountain,  lest  thou  be  consumed.         .         195 

SERMON  XV. 

Vindictive  Justice  Incompatible  with  Charity. 

Romans  xii.  19. — Dearly  beloved,  avenge  not  your- 
selves, but  give  place  unto  wrath :  for  it  is  written — 
Vengeance  is  mine,  Iivill  repay,  saith  the  Lord.       .     207 


viii  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  XVI. 

The  Guilt  and  Danger  of  Scandalizing  Souls. 
Luke  xvii.  1,  2. — Then  said  he  unto  the  disciples,  it 
is  impossible  but  that  offences  will  come :  but  wo  unto 
him  by  ivhom  they  come  !  It  were  better  for  him  that  a 
mill-stone  were  hanged  about  his  neck,  and  he  cast  into 
the  sea,  than  that  he  should  offend  one  of  these  little  ones.  225 

SERMON  XVII. 

The  Nature  of  Gracious  Compassion. 
Luke  xix.  41. — And  when  he  was  come  near,  he  beheld 
the  city,  and  wept  over  it 242 

SERMON  XVIII. 

The  Kingdom  of  Christ. 
John  xviii.  36. — My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world.         257 

SERMON  XIX. 

Acquiescence  in  the  Will  of  God. 
Job  xxxiv.  33. — Should  it  be  according  to  thy  mind  ?     274 

SERMON  XX. 

The  Value  of  Life.  * 

Isaiah  xxxviii.  18,  19,  20. —  The  grave  cannot  praise 
thee  ;  death  cannot  celebrate  thee  ;  they  that  go  down  • 
into  the  pit  cannot  hope  for  thy  truth:  the  living, 
the  living,  he  shall  praise  thee  as  I  do  this  day ;  the 
father  to  the  children  shall  make  known  thy  truth. 
The  Lord  was  ready  to  save  me  ;  therefore  we  will 
sino-  my  songs  to  the  stringed  instruments  all  the  days 
of  our  life   in  the  house   of  the  Lord.         .         .     286 


PKJ 


THEOLOGICAL 


BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTICE. 


THE  Rev.  Samuel  P.  Williams  was  born  in 
Wethersfield,  Connecticut,  Feb.  22,  1779.  His 
family  was  respectable  ;  descended  from  some  of 
the  most  celebrated  divines  New  England  has  pro- 
duced. The  venerable  Stoddard,  who  preceded 
Jonathan  Edwards  at  Northampton,  was  his  great 
grand-father  on  the  mother's  side.  William  Wil- 
liams, whose  name  is  found  on  the  controversial 
pages  of  Edwards,  was  his  paternal  great  grand- 
father. The  race  may  almost  claim  an  hereditary 
alliance  with  the  sacred  desk. 

He  was  early  destined  to  a  literary  life.  He  en- 
tered Yale  College  in  the  year  1792 ;  at  the  age 
of  13  5  an  age  too  early  to  reap  the  benefits  of 
such  an  institution.  There  is  a  culpable  ambition 
in  some  parents  to  crowd  a  child  along  faster  than 
his  powers  will  admit.  Such  a  scholar,  finding  his 
strenf  not  equal  to  the  competition  with  which 
he  is  surrounded,  naturally  surrenders  himself  to 
idleness,  and  too  often  to  vice.  It  does  not  appear 
that  young  Williams  was  ever  vicious  ;  but  he  re- 
flects on  his  time  in  College  in  the  language  of  se- 
B 


X  BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE. 

vere  self-condemnation.     "  My  Collegiate  life  is 

past,  and  with  it  four  years  of .  I  have  forever 

to  mourn  the  neglect  of  their  precious  advantages. 
Time,  expectation,  money,  all  squandered.  I  re- 
solve to  redeem  that  which  is  lost." 

He  was  graduated  in  1796  ;  and  was  for  some 
time  engaged  in  mercantile  employments.  These 
years  passed  without  any  special  regard  to  reli- 
gion. He  was  a  man  of  too  much  frankness  and 
honesty  to  be  successful  in  the  scramble  for  riches. 
He  hated  dissembling  more  than  he  loved  his  inter- 
est.  By  what  particular  circumstances  he  was 
first  led  to  serious  reflection,  we  have  no  means  of 
knowing.  It  appears  from  his  papers  that  in 
March  1803  he  became  a  communicant  5  and  that 
he  entered  into  his  covenant  engagements  with  the 
humility  of  a  penitent  sinner ;  and  the  hopes  of  a 
believer  in  Christ. 

His  attention  was  now  turned  toward  the  study' 
of  Theology.  He  pursued  his  studies  first  in 
New  Haven  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  Dwight, ; 
and  afterwards  at  Springfield,  with  Dr.  Howard  to 
whom  he  was  related.  He  was  licensed  at  West 
Springfield,  April  10th,  1805 ;  preached  his  first 
Sermon  at  Amherst  the  next  month  ;  and  soon  re- 
ceived an  invitation  from  Springfield,  the  place  of 
his  studies,  to  settle  as  a  Colleague  with  his  in- 
structer. 

In  Springfield  many  of  the  people  differed  from 
him  in  their  religious  tenets ;  and  therefore  this  in- 
vitation must  be  considered  as  very  honorable  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE.  Xi 

his  abilities  as  a  preacher.  The  settlement  however 
never  took  place. 

He  was  already  under  two  invitations,  from 
other  places — Deerfield  in  Mass.  and  Mansfield  in 
Conn.  At  Deerfield  there  was  great  unanimity  ; 
Mansfield  was  in  a  broken  state,  and,  had  he  con- 
sulted his  own  ease,  it  seemed  as  if  he  would  have 
chosen  the  former  place.  He  decided  however  on 
going  to  Mansfield  ;  in  which  place  he  was  ordain- 
ed January  1st,  1807.  The  Sermon  was  preached 
by  Doctor  Parsons  of  Amherst. 

The  Church  and  parish  in  Mansfield  had  been 
distracted  by  controversy.  Their  former  pastor 
had  left  the  Orthodox  faith  to  embrace  Unitarian- 
ism — and  it  was  in  the  hope  of  being  a  healer  of 
breaches  without  betraying  the  truth,  that  Mr. 
Williams  went  among  them.  A  minority  in  the 
church  were  avowed  Unitarians  ;  but  consented  to 
the  settlement  of  Mr.  Williams,  on  receiving  a 
pledge  from  the  whole  body,  that  they  should  re- 
tain their  sentiments  without  being  excluded  from 
the  communion.  Such  was  the  ferment  in  which 
he  found  the  place,  occasioned  by  these  discus- 
sions, that  for  two  years  he  omitted  preaching  on 
these  tender  points.  In  a  man  of  his  talents  and 
temperament,  consenting  to  such  an  omission  was 
remarkable.  It  shewed  that  he  had  prudence  as 
well  as  zeal ;  and,  although  on  all  occasions  it  was 
natural  for  him  to  utter  truth,  he  could  for  a  time 
withhold  it,  when  the  utterance  would  produce  no 
beneficial  effect. 


XU  BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE. 

But  as  soon  as  the  effervescence  had  subsided, 
Mr.  Williams  began  to  think  it  important  that 
no  part  of  the  Gospel,  which  he  deemed  essential, 
should  be  concealed.  He  therefore  laboured  to 
convince  his  people  of  the  proper  Deity  of  Christ  5 
of  his  atonement ;  and  of  the  new  coloring  and  in- 
fluence which  all  the  rays  of  the  Gospel  must  as- 
sume by  radiating  from  so  central  a  point.  This 
instead  of  producing  conviction,  was  tearing  open 
old  wounds ;  it  was  the  origin  of  difficulties  which 
finally  ended  in  his  separation  from  his  people. 

It  will  not  be  necessary  to  present  in  detail  all 
the  circumstances  which  led  to  his  departure  from 
Mansfield.  It  was  not  merely  a  theological  differ- 
ence ;  the  people  were  negligent  in  affording  him 
sufficient  support.  He  had  an  increasing  family  ; 
and  money  after  his  ordination  had  depreciated  in 
value.  His  nominal  salary  was  therefore  really 
less  than  at  first.  He  remonstrated  with  his  peo- 
ple and  related  his  difficulties  5  but  without  effect. 
His  ministry  was  closed  in  Mansfield,  September 
7th,  1807  ;  in  which  place  he  had  preached  nine 
hundred  sermons. 

There  is  a  scrupulous  delicacy  expected  and  re- 
quired of  a  Clergyman  in  all  pecuniary  transac- 
tions;, by  some  people,  who  having  little  generosity 
themselves,  resolve  that  their  religious  teachers 
shall  be  generous  to  excess.  But  surely  it  is  not 
unworthy  of  those  who  preach,  and  who  are  animat- 
ed by  the  most  disinterested  virtue,  to  remember 
that  usefulness  cannot  be  continued  without  life, 


BIOGRAPHICAL     NOTICE.  Xlll 

nor  life  supported  without  bread.  In  all  concerns, 
men  should  in  the  outset  understand  each  other  ; 
and  the  preacher  who  from  real,  or  affected  deli- 
cacy, neglects  at  his  settlement  to  demand  explicit- 
ness  in  the  contract,  will  suffer  for  it  in  the  end. 
If  a  preacher  is  an  example  to  the  flock,  he  must 
provide  for  his  family. 

Previous  to  his  removal  from  Mansfield,  Mr. 
Williams  received  invitations  from  some  of  the 
most  respectable  churches  in  our  largest  cities,  to 
preach  to  them  with  a  view  to  settlement ; — a  suf- 
ficient proof  of  his  reputation  as  a  preacher. 

After  spending  two  years  at  Northampton,  where 
his  labours  were  peculiarly  blessed  5  he  was  invit- 
ed to  Newburyport,  December,  1820,  to  preach  in 
the  pulpit  then  made  vacant  by  the  removal  of  Dr. 
Dana  to  the  presidency  of  Dartmouth  College.  In 
this  region,  the  peculiarly  favourable  impression 
made  by  his  first  discourses  will  be  long  remem- 
bered. He  received  an  unanimous  jnvitation  to 
become  pastor  of  the  first  Presbyterian  church  \ 
and  was  installed  February  8th,  1821. 

During  the  few  years  that  he  continued  among 
us,  he  left,  on  the  minds  of  all,  the  impression  of 
possessing  the  character  of  an  ardent  friend  to 
truth,  a  faithful  minister,  and  an  honest  and  inde- 
pendent man.  His  labours  in  the  ministry  were 
abundant;  and  his  success  though  gradual  was 
great.  He  paid  particular  attention  to  the  young ; 
and  endeavoured  to  warn,  reprove  and  rebuke  with 
all   long-suffering  and   doctrine.     His  melodious 


XIV  BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE. 

voice  always  won  the  ear ;  his  ornamental  lan- 
guage gratified  the  fancy ;  and  his  pungent  doc- 
trine reached  the  heart.  Under  his  ministry  many 
were  added  to  the  church  5  and  many  more  brought 
to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth. 

Though  a  very  active  man,  and  having  all  the 
appearance  of  health  and  vigour,  he  had  long  been 
troubled  with  dyspepsical  complaints.  He  had 
several  times  been  taken  from  his  labours  by  sick- 
ness previous  to  the  final  attack  of  his  disease. 
During  the  last  year  of  his  ministry  he  was  very 
feeble.  His  last  public  performance  was  to  preach 
the  thanksgiving  sermon  of  1826,  on  the  value  of 
life.  He  expired  December  23d  of  the  same  year ; 
leaving  a  widow  and  a  numerous  family  of  children, 
the  fruit  of  two  marriages,  to  mourn  his  depar- 
ture.— ut  bonis  comis,  ita  adversus  malos  inju- 
cundus :  ceterum  ex  iracundia  nihil  super er at. 
Secretum  et  silentium  ejus  non  timeres ,  hones- 
tius  putabat  offender  e,  quam  odisse. 

His  funeral  Sermon  was  preached  by  Mr.  Witn- 
ington,  from  which  the  following  extract  may  serve 
for  his  moral  portrait.  The  text  was  II  Cor.  v,  7. 
The  subject,  The  influence  of  faith,  in  the  calam- 
ities of  life. 

"  The  subject  has  been  suggested  by  the 

departure  of  one  who  was  himself  eminently  a  man 
of  faith;  and  whose  closing  scene  exhibited  its 
supporting  power.  In  speaking  of  the  character 
of  the  Rev.  Mr.'  Williams,  I  feel  myself  in  very 


BIOGRAPHICAL     NOTICE.  XV 

little  danger  of  being  subject  to  the  charge  of 
heaping  unmerited  praise  on  the  dead.  The  lines 
of  his  character  were  strongly  marked  ;  every  fea- 
ture of  his  mind  was  bold  and  prominent.  It 
needs  no  discriminating  pencil  to  draw  his  like- 
ness 5  and  in  speaking  of  his  merits,  I  shall  be 
more  confident,  because  I  shall  say  nothing,  which 
will  not  be  assented  to  by  every  friend  and  every 
foe.  The  quality  which  first  struck  the  observer, 
was  the  perfect  transparency  of  his  purposes ; 
every  word  and  gesture  seemed  to  say — Here  is  a 
man,  who  is  above  all  disguise.  His  heart  was 
not  left  lurking  in  the  folds  of  impenetrable  con- 
cealment ;  but  it  was  in  his  face,  and  on  his 
tongue  ;  and  seemed  to  challenge  the  observer  to 
acknowledge  his  merits,  and  estimate  or  oppose  his 
imperfections.  More  suavity,  perhaps,  more  flex- 
ibility, a  greater  disposition  to  assent  to  opposi- 
tion, without  the  stern  permission  of  truth  and  con- 
science, might  have  been  agreeable  to  those,  who 
look  only  on  the  surface  of  a  character.  But  our 
departed  brother  did  not  purchase  any  man's 
friendship,  at  the  price  of  dissimulation.  On  all 
occasions  he  threw  out  the  truth ;  and  left  it  to 
take  its  effect.  He  did  not  come  with  supplica- 
tion and  cringes,  to  ask  permission  to  creep  through 
the  path  of  duty  ;  but  he  boldly  walked  up  to  the 
entrance  and  demanded  a  passage. 

"  Every  minister,  and  every  man,  has  his  pe- 
culiar gift ;  and  it  is  vain  to  expect  to  blend  incon- 
sistent qualities  in  the  same  mind.     The  virtues 


XVI  BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE. 

themselves,  though  in  theory  consistent  enough 
with  one  another,  are  not  always  consistent  with 
the  peculiarities  of  even  a  virtuous  individual. 
Mr.  Williams  was  more  formed  for  a  reprover  than 
a  consoler  ;  the  chamber  of  affliction  was  not,  per- 
haps, his  most  shining  scene.  He  bore  his  own 
trials  with  too  much  fortitude  fully  to  enter  into 
the  weakness  and  fears  of  the  mind,  enfeebled  by 
sickness  and  trembling  on  the  verge  of  eternity. 
He  was  certainly  not  the  man  whom  you  would 
wish  to  see  in  any  affliction  which  you  had  brought 
on  yourself  by  your  own  infirmity  ;  for  he  would 
not  spare  you.  He  insisted  on  it,  that  repentance 
must  go  before  consolation. 

"  As  for  that  sentimental  religion,  so  prevalent 
in  the  present  day,  which  consists  in  the  fumes  of 
the  imagination  rather  than  in  the  solid  exercises 
of  the  heart  5  which  regulates  its  hopes  and  fears 
by  every  elevation  and  depression  of  the  spirits ; 
the  blind  impulse  5  the  affected  sigh  ;  the  fair  pro- 
fession, and  ostentatious  humility,  he  held  them.all 
in  utter  abhorrence.  He  could  not  tolerate,  for  a 
moment,  the  religion,  which  separates  the  feelings 
of  the  heart  from  the  conduct  and  the  life.  He 
demanded  of  all  professed  christians  a  piety,  which 
proved  its  power  by  crucifying  the  flesh,  with  its 
affections  and  lusts.  He  seemed  to  be  a  man  pe- 
culiarly calculated  to  brush  away,  vvith  a  bold 
hand,  all  the  froth  and  foam,  which  too  often  rest 
on  the  waters  of  the  Sanctuary ;  and  to  show  to 
the  church  of  God,  pure  religion,  defecated  from 


BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE.  XVII 

every  sediment,  in  all  its  transparency  and  simpli- 
city and  truth. 

"  Yet  he  did  not  pass  to  the  other  extreme.  In 
burning  with  the  fire  of  his  eloquence,  the  wood, 
the  hay  and  the  stubble  of  imperfect  doctrine,  he 
spared,  with  the  wisest  discrimination,  the  gold 
and  the  silver  and  the  precious  stones,  with  which 
it  must  be  combined.  Deeply  impressed  with  the 
truth  of  man's  depravity,  and  conscious  that  the 
doctrines  of  the  cross  were  the  only  cure,  he 
preached  them  without  partiality  and  without  fear. 
He  felt  that  the  sinner  was  undone,  because  he 
found  in  the  Bible  that  the  Saviour  was  divine. 

"  Respecting  his  abilities — a  subject  of  minor 
importance  in  this  connexion — every  discriminat- 
ing judge  must  come  to  the  same  conclusion. 
His  executive  powers  in  the  pulpit  were  of  the 
first  order.  You  all  remember  that  melodious 
voice  that  fastened  the  ear  to  his  theme  5  that 
beautiful  language,  those  shining  illustrations, 
that  energy  and  earnestness,  with  which  he  cap- 
tivated the  attention,  and  bore  down  on  the 
heart.  He  was  an  eloquent  man  and  mighty  in 
the  scriptures.  Without  being  a  finished  schol- 
ar, his  mind  was  enriched  with  knowledge ;  with- 
out being  a  metaphysician,  he  was  a  powerful, 
practical  reasoner.  Though  his  style  was  occa- 
sionally obscure,  (the  first  objection  which  was 
always  made  to  it  by  the  critick)  he  never,  per- 
haps, preached  a  sermon  which  did  not  make,  on  an 
attentive  hearer,  the  intended  impression.  His  ser- 
C 


XV11I  BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE. 

inons  were  so  full,  that  after  all  the  obscure  parts 
were  lost,  enough  remained  to  satisfy  and  improve 
the  mind. 

"  The  faults  of  his  character  were  such  as  are 
commonly  associated  with  the  great  qualities  of 
which  I  have  been  speaking.  He  had  great  cour- 
age and  decision  5  and  something  of  that  indiscre- 
tion to  which  these  virtues  naturally  lead.  Sin- 
gling out  his  ultimate  purpose,  and  conscious  of  the 
rectitude  of  his  intentions,  he  did  not  always  con- 
sider the  inferior  obstacles  that  stood  in  his  way. 
An  enemy  might  say  he  was  sometimes  rash  ;  but 
his  intimate  friends  knew,  that  his  seeming  rash- 
ness was  ardour  in  the  cause  of  religion  and  truth. 
His  mind  commonly  rushed  to  its  purposes ;  but 
those  purposes  were  generally  such  as  a  good  man 
would  not  be  ashamed  to  own.  If  his  superficial 
faults  sometimes  procured  for  him  furious  enemies ; 
his  real  excellence  always  sealed  to  him  the  at- 
tachment of  the  warmest  friends.  He  was  not  a 
man  to  make  a  neutral  impression. 

"His  closing  scene  illustrated  the  power  of  faith, 
and  the  consolations  of  those  truths,  which  it  had 
been  his  business  to  preach.  It  fell  to  my  lot  to 
announce  to  him  the  probability  of  his  speedy  dis- 
solution, and  the  importance  of  saying  to  his 
friends  and  family  whatever  he  might  wish  to  say, 
before  reason  was  lost.  The  tidings  were  receiv- 
ed with  calmness  and  submission  ;  and  soon  after 
he  said  to  a  friend—/  have  not  had.  during  my  sick- 
ness the  power  vf  regulating  my  thoughts  as  1 


BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE.  XIX 

could  tvish :  it  has  been  a  confused  and  broken 
time  :  but  I  see  in  the  gospel  a  broad  foundation  ,* 
/  trust  in  my  Saviour  alone  ,•  the  purposes  of  God 
are  right,  and  I  have  no  ivish  to  alter  them.  On 
another  occasion  he  said: — When  a  man  is  brought 
into  my  state — into  sickness  and  a  near  prospect 
of  eternity,  he  needs  faith,  decided  faith  ,*  the  mind 
must  not  be  left  wavering,  doubtful,  uncertain  ,•  it 
must  not  only  see  that  the  gospel  is  true,  but  it 
must  repose  with  living  confidence  on  the  promises 
of  the  Redeemer.  Under  these  impressions  his 
spirit  took  its  flight  to  its  Father  and  God. 

"  Farewell,  my  Brother,  I  will  not-  say  a  long 
farewell — Thy  last  solemn  message  still  vibrates 
on  my  ears.*  Very  pleasant  has  thy  life  been  to  me; 
we  took  sweet  counsel  together  and  walked  to  the 
house  of  God  in  company.  Speak  to  me  by  thy 
death  ;  admonish  me  from  thy  tomb,  and  urge  my 
conscience  to  work  while  the  day  lasts.  And  now, 
eternal  Saviour,  receive  him  to  thyself-^-with  all 
liis  virtues  and  all  his  faults ;  those  virtues,  we 
trust,  were  the  fruit  of  thy  Spirit ;  and  those  faults, 
we  humbly  hope,  are  now  washed  away  in  thine 
atoning  blood  ! 

"  To  the  bereaved  widow,  and  the  mourning  fa- 
mily, we  have  no  other  \  consolations  to  offer  than 
those  suggested  by  our  subject.     May  they  have 


*  This  alludes  to  a  message  which  the  speaker  received  from  the  deceas- 
ed a  few  days  before  his  departure.  It  was  this  : — Enjoy  what  you  cany 
do  all  the  good  you  can,  while  life  lasts  ;  for  the  days  must  come,  as  I 
have  found  from  experience,  tolien  you  shall  say  I  have  no  pleasure  in 
them.    His  sickness  was  languishing  and  painful. 


XX  BIOGRAPHICAL    NOTICE. 

faith  in  God  ;  and  let  the  children  remember  their 
father's  counsel  now  that  he  can  speak  to  them  no 
more.  To  the  church  the  loss  is  great.  The 
faithful  pastor — the  counsellor — the  upright  man  is 
gone  !  and  can  warn  and  lead  them  no  more.  But 
fear  not,  mourning  flock — the  Great  Shepherd 
reigns  $  and  has  promised  never  to  leave  nor  for- 
sake his  people.  But  I  must  speak  to  one  class 
more — the  sinner,  who  has  no  faith  in  Christ. 
Your  reprover  is  dead — he  never  can  speak  to  you 
again.  But  you  must  meet  him  at  the  bar  of  God. 
He  will  rise  up  to  bear  his  testimony  to  the  faith- 
ful manner,  in  which  he  warned  you  to  flee  from 
the  wrath  to  come.  Has  he  spoken  in  vain  ?  Are 
you  yet  in  your  sins  ?  Dare  you  be  a  rebel  before 
that  coffin  ?  O  !  remember  the  warnings  of  the 
lips  that  are  now  silent ;  and  prepare  to  meet  him 
when  the  last  trumpet  shall  wake  the  dead  !" 


SERMON  I. 

A    COMPENDIUM    OF    THE    GOSPEL. 

Mark,  xvi.  15. 
Preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature. 

IT  is  now  about  eighteen  hundred  and  twenty  years 
since  there  appeared  in  the  Eastern  World,  a  person  of  sin- 
gular dignity,  and  of  uncommon  wisdom  and  disinterested- 
ness, calling  himself  the  Son  of  God.  His  avowed  object 
was,  to  enlighten  and  redeem  the  moral  world.  This  person 
was,  from  the  beginning,  attended  with  such  uncommon 
signs,  and  endowed  with  such  extraordinary  gifts,  as  could 
not  fail  to  draw  upon  him  the  attention  of  all  the  people. 
Yet  such  was  his  modesty,  and  indifference  to  personal  ag- 
grandizement, that  nothing  seemed  farther  from  his  heart 
than  a  desire  "to  be  seen  of  men."  He  exhibited  nothing 
©f  a  spirit  of  emulation,  nor  affected  the  parade  and  glory 
of  human  greatness.  All  the  supernatural  works  which  he 
performed,  and  all  which  were  wrought  by  the  Father  in  his 
behalf,  were  merely  attestations  to  his  superior  excellence,  or 
vouchers  to  the  truth  of  his  pretensions.  As  he  assumed 
the  character  of  the  Messiah,  he  appealed  to  the  Prophets, 
who  had  testified  of  him,  whose  writings  were  in  the  hands 
of  the  people,  and  whose  descriptions  might  be  easily  com- 
1 


r    *•• 


2  SERMON  I. 

pared  with  the  life  he  exhibited.  The  manner  of  his  com- 
ing-, the  prodigies  which  should  attend  and  follow  him,  the 
works  he  should  perform,  and  the  death  he  should  die,  were 
all  foretold.  He,  and  no  other,  answered  the  inspired  de- 
scription of  the  Messiah.  He  taught  with  authority  hitherto 
unknown.  He  commanded  with  unheard-of  effect.  The 
powers  of  the  natural  and  moral  world  alike  obeyed  him. 
For  this,  though  unknown  by  all,  and  envied  and  hated  by 
the  Prince  and  the  Priest,  he  was  able  to  engage  the  affec- 
tions and  procure  the  company  of  a  chosen  few.  These  he 
colled  Disciples,  and  trained  them  up  in  the  knowledge  and 
love  of  his  kingdom.  They  had  left  all  to  attend  and 
follow  him,  and  were  soon  to  be  invested,  by  him,  with  pow- 
ers similar,  but  subordinate,  to  his  own,  and  to  be  made  the 
vehicles  of  his  communications  to  all  the  world. 

The  writings  of  his  Disciples,  dictated  under  an  influence 
p'  eluding  the  possibility  of  mistake,  give  an  account  of  his 
character'' arid  business  ; — his  whole  design  concerning  our 
guilty  and  miserable  world  :  and  these  constitute  what  he 
calis  the  Gospel,  or  the  good  tidings  from  heaven  to  men. 
The 'system  of  religion  here  taught,  is  eminently  the  good 
news,  inasmuch  as  the  holiness  and  hope  of  every  rational 
inhabitant  of  the  globe,  have  their  only  basis  in  the  truths  of 
this  revelation,  and  man's  way  to  Divine  knowledge  no  othev 
sufficient  and  effectual  guide. 

When  about  to  separate  himself  from  his  little  family,  in 
order  to  secure  the  end  of  his  life,  he  gave  them  the  charge 
in  the  text.  Addressing  them  officially,  and  therefore  their 
successors  in  office,  he  solemnly  and  authoritatively  required 
them  to  communicate  these  tidings  to  all  nations,  and  pledged 
himself  to  continue  the  Christian  Ministry  to^he  end  of  the 
world. 

To  shew  you,  that  what  is  here  called  the  Gospel,  or 
good  news,  is  pre-eminently  entitled  to  this  appellation,  and 
therefore  worthy  of  universal  acceptance,  is  the  object  of 


SERMON  I.  8 

this  discourse.  This  will  be  accomplished  by  a  compendi- 
ous account  of  what  the  Gospel  is: — and  to  render  the  sub* 
ject  as  simple  as  possible,  and  easy  to  be  remembered,  I 
shall  consider  the  whole  testimony  of  Christ  and  his  Apostles 
as  being  comprised  in  a  Doctrine — a  Command — an  Invi- 
tation— a  Promise — and  a  Threat. 

I.  The  Doctrine  of  the  Gospel, — which  is, — that  "Jesus 
Christ  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners."  This  is,  em- 
phatically, the  peculiar  Doctrine  of  the  books  of  the  New 
Testament.  For  though  there  are  many  other  doctrinal 
truths  contained  in  them,  yet  this,  thoroughly  understood, 
will  be  found  to  include  them  all. — This  is  the  grand  truth 
announced  by  the  angel  at  the  Nativity.  "  Behold  I  bring 
you  good  tidings  of  great  joy,  which  shall  be  to  all  people  : 
for  unto  you  is  born  this  day,in  the  city  of  David,  a  Saviour, 
who  is  Christ  the  Lord/' — This  is  the  Messiah,  "whose 
goings  forth  have  been  from  everlasting,"  and  of  whose  na- 
ture and  office  and  object,  testimony  is  borne  in  Moses  and 
the  Prophets  and  the  Psalms. 

1.  In  this  Doctrine  then,  is  implied,  first,  the  ruined 
state  of  man.  The  Wisdom  and  Goodness  of  a  God  could 
never  be  employed  in  providing  a  Saviour  for  the  innocent ; — 
nor  for  the  guilty,  if  able  to  succor  and  recover  themselves. 
That  is,  for  men,  who  have  either  deserved  well,  or  who, 
though  {//-deserving,  are  in  a  capacity  for  restoration  to 
righteousness  and  peace.  To  put  them  in  a  capacity  for 
salvation — to  expiate  their  guilt — to  recover  them  to  holi- 
ness, and,  in  this  way,  to  honor  and  happiness — was  the 
grand  object  of  Christ's  embassy  to  earth.  This  is  his  own 
account  of  it.  "The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to 
save  that  which  was  lost."  His  name  denotes  his  object — 
"his  name  shall  be  called  Jesus,  because  he  shall  save  hi?" 
people  from  their  sins."  Thus  to  be  saved,  is  to  be  deliv- 
ered alike  from  the  miseries  of  a  polluted  nature,  a. id  a 
guilty  and  condemned  state. — From    all   the  evils  indeed, 


4  SERMON  I. 

which,  since  the  expulsion  of  man  from  Paradise,  have  pour- 
ed in  one  unbroken  torrent  on  the  world,  and  deluged  moun- 
tain and  valley,  island  and  continent  alike,  with  iniquity  and 
woe. 

2.  In  the  second  place,  this  Doctrine  implies  an  ampli- 
tude and  sufficiency,  in  Jesus  Christ,  to  save  unto  the  utter- 
most all  that  cordially  receive  him — a  power,  adequate  to 
the  subjugation  of  every  enemy  of  man's  peace  and  virtue — 
an  adaptedness  of  official  virtue,  to  supply  every  moral 
want,  and  relieve  every  spiritual  infirmity — and  wisdom  as 
extensive  as  his  power,  to  remove  all  the  obstacles  to  recon- 
ciliation between  God  and  man.  Obstacles,  on  the  part  of 
God,  presented  by  the  sanction  of  his  law,  requiring  the 
death  of  its  every  transgressor — a  sanction,  which  the  honor 
of  his  government,  and  the  immutability  of  his  perfections, 
required  him  to  maintain.  Obstacles,  on  the  part  of  man, 
found  in  the  impotence  of  his  understanding  to  find  a  way  of 
escape,  and  the  inveterate  opposition  of  his  will  to  returning 
to  God  in  any  way.  To  remove  the  obstacle,  on  the  part  of 
God,  it  was  necessary  to  vindicate  the  perfections  of  God, 
in  his  denunciations  against  the  transgressor.  To  remove 
the  obstacles  on  the  part  of  man,  it  was  equally  necessary 
to  secure  an  influence  upon  his  heart  which  should  transform 
it  into  the  love  and  likeness  of  the  Divine  law.  To  vindicate 
the  Divine  perfections,  and  establish  the  law,  the  proper 
wages  of  sin  must  be  paid,  and  the  curse  inflicted.  .The 
Messiah  must  bear  in  his  own  person  the  iniquities  of  us  all, 
and  thus  furnish  an  expression  of  God's  displeasure  against 
sin,  while  he  pardons  the  sinner ;  and  an  affecting  and  pow- 
erful motive  to  all  who  return  to  their  allegiance,  never 
more  by  transgression  to  move  his  displeasure,  or  to  incur 
the  penalty  of  his  broken  law. 

It  was  necessary  that  a  Mediator  should  have  power  to 
enlighten  human  ignorance,  in  respect  of  the  character  and 
counsels  of  the  kingdom  ;  and  grace  to  stoop  to  our  infirm- 


SERMON  I.  5 

hies,  that  he  might  illustrate  and  magnify,  in  all  eyes,  the 
principles  of  the  Divine  Government,  expose  the  evil  of  sin, 
and  exemplify,  in  man's  nature,  the  excellence  of  the  precep- 
tive will  of  God.  To  all  these  purposes,  the  Messiah  was 
found  equal,  and  in  the  office  of  a  Teacher  and  Sacrifice,  a 
Potentate  and  Sanctifier,  became  the  author  of  salvation  to 
all  them  who  obey  him.  "Great  is  this  mystery  of  Godli- 
ness." "God  was  manifest  in  the  flesh,"  according  tb  the 
testimony  of  the  evangelist  John,  and  as  such,  was  "preach- 
ed unto  the  Gentiles"  by  the  Apostles,  and  "believed  on,  in" 
every  age  of  "the  world."  He  is  the  source  of  life — "the 
bread  of  God."  In  him  the  hope  of  the  sinner  commences 
its  purifying  and  animating  course,  and  to  him  all  the  ends 
of  the  earth  look  for  salvation.  Had  God  exacted  of  man 
even  one  stone,  in  the  foundation  of  his  spiritual  house,  the 
temple  to  this  day  had  been  a  ruin.  But  salvation  is  of  the 
Lord.  He  is  the  great  corner-stone  of  the  edifice,  whose 
whole  foundation  was  laid,  whose  superstructure  has  been 
reared,-  and  whose  top-stone  is  to  be  brought  forth,  in  accla- 
mations of  rich  and  infinite  grace. 

JI.  But  secondly,  the  Gospel  has  a  Command  :  and  as  all 
its  Doctrines  are  involved  in  the  one  truth  we  have  examin- 
ed, so  all  its  precepts  are  comprehended  in  this  one  com- 
mandment of  God — "  that  ye  believe  on  him  whom  he  hath 
sent."  Faith,  working  by  love,  is  the  evangelical  Law,  by 
obedience  to  which,  all  flesh  may  be  saved.  This  is  "  good 
tidings"  to  a  world  under  a  Law,  requiring  the  death  of  its 
every  transgressor.  Good  news  indeed — that  God  can 
"  be  just,  and  yet  the  justifier  of  him  that  believeth  in 
Jesus." — Since,  "  what  the  Law  could  not  do  in  that  it  was 
weak,  through  the  flesh,"  the  Gospel  has  achieved,  f  For 
now  there  is  no  condemnation  to  them  who  are  in  Christ 
Jesus ;  the  law  of  the  spirit  of  life  having  freed  them  from 
the  law  of  sin  and  death.'  Freed  already  from  guilt,  they 
are  destined  to  perfect  freedom  from  corruption,  and  shall 


(5  SERMON  1. 

ultimately   inherit  every  good  comprised  in  the  promise  oi 
mercy  unto  salvation. 

III.  The  Gospel,  in  the  third  place,  contains  an  Invita- 
tion. "Whosoever  will,  let  him  come  and  take  of  the  water 
of  life  freely."  This  invitation  is  universal.  No  nation, 
nor  men  of  any  rank  or  condition,  are  forbidden  the  privi- 
lege. "  To  every  creature"  the  commission  to  preach  the 
Gospel,  extends.  "  In  the  last  day,  that  great  day  of  the 
feast,  Jesus  stood  and  cried,  if  an}'  man  thirst  let  him  come 
unto  me  and  drink."  "  And  the  Spirit  and  the  Bride  say 
come,  and  let  all  who  are  interested  say  come,  and  whosoever 
will,  let  him  come,  and  take  the  water  of  life  freely."  O 
wretched  heathens !  who  have  wasted  all  your  intellectual, 
physical  and  moral  powers,  upon  "  cisterns  which  can  hold 
no  water,"  what  cheering  tidings  shall  these  be  to  you  ! 
What  to  your  nation,  miserable  Jew  !  Tired  of  j^our  disap- 
pointments from  lying  prophets  and  seers,  of  a  Saviour  to 
come — what  joyful  tidings  will  they  shortly  be  to  you  t 
And  you,  miserable  worldling,  of  christian  name  !- — when 
in  the  light  of  the  spirit  of  truth,  j'ou  shall  behold  your 
needs  and  your  interest  in  the  invitation — what  overwhelm- 
ing gladness  will  these  tidings  be  to  you !  And  what,  at  last, 
to  all  who  welcome  cordially  and  duly  prize  this  Gospel, 
will  be  the  delights  of  that  banquet  which  has  been  spread 
by  redeeming  love  ! 

IV.  For  the  answer,  take  the  fourth  part.  The  Promise 
of  the  Gospel.  "An  entrance  shall  be  ministered  to  you 
abundantly  into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ — I  will  give  you  rest."  How  sweet  to 
the  weary  traveller,  the  man  of  active  business,  the  sick 
man's  aching  frame,  the  galley  slave,  and  the  victim  of  op- 
pression, is  the  period  of  deliverance.  Yet  how  soon  is 
every  man's  resting  season  over  !  But  the  christian's  rest  is 
an  eternal  day.  .'Tis  not  cessation  from  toil  and  trial 
merely — but    from  the   galling  servitude   and  disgraceful 


SERMON  I.  : 

drudgery  of  sin.  'Tis  the  termination  of  darkness  and  ap- 
prehension and  doubt,  and  sorrow  and  temptation  and  con- 
flict. 'Tis  the  jubilee  of  nations. — The  rest  of  Jehovah's 
kingdom,  from  the  war  which  has  kept  it  in  commotion, 
from  the  day  of  the  apostacy  in  heaven.  'Tis  the  day  of 
final  separation,  between  the  friends  of  God,  and  the  princi- 
palities and  powers  and  thrones  and  dominions,  which  have 
assailed  his  people  and  opposed  Messiah's  reign.  'Tis  a 
rest,  comprehensive  of  all  the  enjoyment  of  a  prospective 
eternity  of  increasing  knowledge,  holiness  and  joy.  'Tis  a 
"  being  filled  with  the  fulness  of  God."  In  contrast  with 
man's  vassalage,  and  an  imprisoned  state  of  the  spirit,  it  is 
liberty. — In  opposition  to  the  tendency  of  our  present  exist- 
ence, it  is  immortality. — Compared  with  the  deformity  and 
imperfection  of  the  Church  on  earth,  it  is  purity  and  glory. 
"  All  things,"  says  this  evangelical  promise,  "  are  yours.'" — 
1  Life,  death,  the  world,  the  goods  of  the  rich,  the  gifts  of  the 
wise,  things  present  and  things  to  come.'  To  all  who  re- 
ceive the  Doctrine,  obey  the  Command,  accept  the  Invita- 
tion, the  Promise  is  made  sure.  It  leads  them  with  ac- 
ceptance, while  here,  to  a  Throne  of  Grace,  and  hereafter, 
to  a  crown  of  unfading  glory.  This — sinful  heart !  this,  is 
to  be  saved.  And  that  the  heirs  of  the  promise  "  who  have 
fled  for  refuge  and  laid  hold  on  the  hope  set  before  them  in 
the  Gospel,  might  have  strong  consolation,  God  has  con- 
firmed that  promise  by  oath  :"  so  that  by  two  immutable 
securities  they  have,  made  over  to  them,  all  that  God  can 
grant,  compatible  with  the  retention  of  his  supremacy,  and 
all  that  man  can  desire,  while  possessing  only  a  limited 
capacity. 

If  this  be  the  Gospel,  well  do  we,  Christian  Brethren,  glory- 
only  in  the  Cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ — and  though  we 
have  not  seen  him,  though  it  doth  not  yet  appear  what  we 
shall  be  when  awaked  in  his  likeness;  yet  believing  in  him, 
we  may  well  rejoice  with  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory  ! 


3  SERMON  I. 

V.  But  in  the  last  place,  the  Gospel  contains  a  Threat^ 
and  this  completes  the  evidence,  as  well  as  the  description  of 
its  evangelical  excellence.  The  Threat  is  terrible ;  and  to 
an  eye  of  flesh  does  not  readily  suggest  the  consistency  or 
connection  between  the  several  parts  of  these  good  tidings  : 
and  perhaps  this  appendage  may  excite  a  doubt  whether  the 
Gospel  be  quite  deserving  of  the  appellation  by  which  it 
commends  itself  to  men.  But  what  is  the  Threat  ?  Be  not 
alarmed — contrite  spirit !  it  was  never  designed  to  distress 
the  broken  heart.  Be  not  high  minded — unbeliever !  it  will 
be  executed  with  palpable  justice  on  thee,  except  thou  art 
willing  to  be  saved.  He  who  denies  the  Doctrine,  diso- 
beys the  Command,  refuses  the  Invitation,  disregards  the 
Promise,  and  is  unmoved  by  the  Threat,  he,  and  he  surely 
"  shall  be  damned" — that  is,  according  to  inspired  explana- 
tion, "shall  be  punished  with  everlasting  destruction  from 'the- 
presence  of  the  Lord  and  from  the  glory  of  his  power."  This 
you  will  observe  is  not  the  language  of  the  Law  only,  but  of 
the  Gospel.  Not  of  unmixed  justice  merely,  but  of  Justice 
looking  on  the  world  with  the  eyes  of  Grace.  Of  Grace,  in 
the  first  place  to  all  who  hear  the  Gospel.  Of  Grace,  in  tlje 
second  place,  to  all  who  shall  be  ultimately  benefited  by  the 
Gospel ;  and  therefore  of  Grace,  thirdly,  to  the  Universe  as 
a  whole. 

Strange  as  it  may  appear,  this  very  menace  is,  by  the  Apos- 
tle, stated  to  be  an  act  of  Grace  to  all  who  hear  the  Gospel. 
And  none  but  unbelievers  will  dissent  from  this  sentiment : 
for  none  but  unbelievers  are  determined  to  reject  salvation  ; 
and  therefore  none  others  have  any  selfish  interest,  to  bias 
them  to  such  dissent.  But  even  unbelievers  themselves, 
may  possibly  be  persuaded  that  the  Threat,  awful  and 
severe  as  it  is,  proceeds  from  compassion  toward  them,  so 
far  as  it  has  a  tendency  to  evince  the  absolute  necessity  of 
a  change  of  purpose  and  pursuit,  and  of  exciting  them  to 
inquire  after  the  way  of  escape.      That  such  is  its  tendency, 


SERMON  I.  9 

we  are  authorized  to  say — for  in  sacred  language  we  have 
observed  that  by  the  terrors  of  the  Lord  men  have  been 
persuaded.  And  though  it  has^ver  been  the  language  of 
the  thoughtless  and  profane,  as  well  as  of  some  visionary 
theologians,  'we  are  neither  to  be  driven  to  heaven,  nor 
frighted  into  a  course  of  evangelical  virtue  f  yet  should  they 
ever  touch  the  skirts  of  that  virtue,  or  find  the  gate  to 
heaven,  this  Threat  will  have  had  some  influence  in  ren-. 
dering  that  touch  desirable — some  instrumentality  in  per- 
suading them  to  escape  from  death. 

God  did  not  act  without  design  in  revealing  his  wrath 
from  heaven,  against  all  unrighteousness  and  ungodliness 
in  men  :  and  what  it  is  not  weakness  in  God  to  reveal, 
it  is  no  virtue  nor  wisdom  in  man  to  disbelieve.  Who- 
ever believes  him  sincere  in  the  Threat,  will  be  influ- 
enced by  his  belief  j  for  faith  is  an  actuating  power,  and 
embraces  the  whole  testimony  of  God.  And  should  so 
important  a  part  of  his  testimony  have  no  influence  on 
the  heart  ?  And  is  it  not  gracious  in  God  to  attempt 
to  move  us,  by  every  motive  which  can  touch  the  springs 
of_ human  action  ?  And  if  destruction  actually  impends, 
is  it  not  kind  to  give  the  warning  as  well  as  provide  the 
way  of  escape  ?  And  if  we  hear  the  note  of  danger,  is  it 
unmanly  or  unwise  to  be  alarmed  and  flee  ? — Or  is  it  great- 
ness and  courage,  for  a  little  puny  thing,  like  man,  to  defy 
the  Almighty's  Thunders  ;  and  boast  of  bravery  in  com- 
bating the  strength  of  an  Omnipotent  arm  ?  As  if  Jehovah 
would  not  stoop  to  consume  the  briars  arrayed  against  him, 
by  so  insignificant  an  enemy — or,  as  if  even  he  were  too 
weak  to  make  a  sinner  tremble.  'Tis  grace  in  God  to 
speak  in  every  tongue  of  entreaty  and  of  admonition,  of 
threatening  and  of  promise,  and  he  is  in  the  grossest  sense 
"  a  fool,"  who  is  not  moved,  when  he  hears  the  voice,  to 
turn  and  live. 

But  admit  that  there  are  men  hardy  enough  to  laugh  at 
2 


1©  SERMON  I. 

his  terrors,  and  to  mock  when  his  fear  has  not  yet  come—' 
Admit  that  there  are  hearts  so  obdurate,  as  to  contemn  alike 
the  tender  and  the  terribleffcmd  to  sin  on  in  defiance  both  of 
mercy  and  of  vengeance — Is  it  not  an  act  of  the  highest 
compassion  to  the  rest  of  the  universe,  to  gather  such  out 
from  among  the  just,  and  bind  them  down  to  a  condition 
where  they  can  no  more  annoy  the  heritage  of  God,  and 
no  more  offend  by  their  blasphemies,  nor  interrupt  forever 
the  pleasures  of  the  pure  in  heart  ?  Is  there  any  other  way, 
to  secure  the  peace,  and  preserve,  uncontaminated,  the  vir- 
tue of  his  kingdom  ?  In  omitting  to  do  this,  how  is  he  to 
fulfil  his  promises  to  the  redeemed  ?  How  is  he  to  shield 
from  outrage,  and  fulfil  his  covenant  with,  his  Son  ?  How, 
in  short,  is  he  to  do  justice  to  those  perfections,  which  his 
truth  is  pledged  to  exonerate  from  the  imputations  with 
which  the  incorrigible  continues  practically  to  tax  them  ?  In  a 
word,  without  doing  all  this,  before  the  sun,  how  far  short  will 
he      ive  come,  of  consummating  the  glories  of  his  kingdom  ! 

It  seems  hardly  possible,  that  the  intelligent  hearer  should 
not  perceive,  that  the  glory  of  God's  name  and  kingdom, 
requires  alike  the  publication  and  execution  of  this  Threat; 
and  if  so,  that  it  is  fitly  comprehended  in  those  tidings  which 
angels,  and  the  spirits  of  good  men,  proclaim  and  echo  back 
with  gladness,  and  whose  fruits  they  will  ever  contemplate 
with  ineffable  delight.  To  the  prisoners  of  despair,  it  cannot 
be  good  tidings.  Prisoners  of  hope,  however,  as  ive  are,  it 
should  not  grieve. 

Tell  me,  I  pray  you,  if  you  do  not  rejoice,  when,  after 
having  been  cruelly  oppressed  and  trodden  down  by  inso- 
lence and  malice,  and  your  best  friends  having  undeservedly 
suffered  with  you  from  men  who  have  "  felt  power  and  for- 
gotten right" — you  see  that  power  restrained,  that  will  to 
inflict  such  wrongs,  confined  by  proper  authority,  and  ren- 
dered harmless  to  society  ?  And  why  not  thus  judge  of  the 
Government  of  God  ?     Is  not  his   the  proper  authority  ? 


SERMON  I.  II 

Will  he  not  as  accurately  apportion  punishment  to  crime  ? 
Why  then,  may  it  not  be  esteemed  good  news,  not  that 
others  suffer,  but  that  their  power  to  cause  suffering  is 
abridged?  That  a  day  is  coming  which  shall  put  an  end 
to  the  mischiefs  of  sin,  and  to  the  power  of  those  who  hurt 
and  offend — a  day  which  shall  liberate  Jehovah's  kingdom 
from  evil — when  the  oppressor  shall  cease  and  the  vile  man, 
no  more  speak  villainy,  and  the  scourge  be  wrested  out  of 
the  hand  of  the  malignant — a  clay  in  which  the  faithfulness 
of  God,  as  his  patience  has  already  been,  shall  be  made  to 
excel  in  glory,  and  his  goodness  be  relieved  from  the  charge 
of  indifference  to  sin.  Is  not  all  this  necessary  to  the  pre- 
vention of  crime,  to  the  safety  of  the  virtuous,  and  to  the 
glory  of  him  who  has  borne,  and  will  ever  bear,  the  sceptre  of 
the  worlds  ?  And,  if  he  who  would  secrete  the  assassin,  and 
rescue  the  public  robber  from  the  hands  of  justice,  does  but 
excite  against  himself  the  indignant  sentiments  of  a  virtuous 
community — how  far  short  of  genuine  benevolence  to  God's 
kingdom,  must  we  fall,  to  account  it  an  unrighteous  thing  in 
God,  "  when  he  shall  come  to  be  glorified  in  his  saints  and 
admired  in  all  them  that  believe,"  to  rescue  his  people  from 
the  contamination  and  injuries  of  a  guilty  world  ! 

It  is  in  view  of  the  retributions  of  that  day,  that  Jesus 
Christ  bids  his  disciples  cultivate  the  virtues  of  passive 
courage — forbearance,  patience,  fortitude,  meekness. — It  is 
because  such  a  day  is  appointed,  that  he  bids  us  bear  the 
scoff  and  jest  and  strife  of  tongues,  and  unresistingly  take 
wrong,  and  receive  outrage  with  christian  meekness. 
"  Dearly  beloved" — is  the  argument — "  avenge  not  your- 
selves— vengeance  is  mine — I  will  repay."  The  righteous 
leave  the  retribution  of  the  wicked  to  that  day — and  not- 
withstanding, love  his  appearing.  Let  us  not  then  with  arro- 
gance such  as  approaches  that  of  Eden's  seducer,  affect  to 
surpass  in  our  mercifulness,  the  great  God  himself,  whose 
nature  is  love,  and  rear  our  claim  to  benevolence  on  a  sup- 


12  SERMON  L 

position,  which  subverts  the  integrity  and  kindness  of  Jeho- 
vah's throne. — While  we  adore  the  grace,  let  us  not  disjoin 
it  from  the  truth  which  came  by  Jesus  Christ. 

If  now  it  has  been  made  out  to  your  conviction,  hearer — 
as  was  proposed  in  the  beginning — that  the  testimony  of 
Jesus  Christ,  called  the  "  good  tidings,"  is  preeminently 
entitled  to  this  appellation  ;  then,  in  the  name  of  its  blessed 
author,  why  do  you  not  receive  and  welcome  it  to  your 
hearts  ?  What  barrier  is  there  between  that  heart  and  salva- 
tion ?  If  you  like  the  Gospel — if  it  be  not  in  pretence  merely, 
but  in  truth  good  tidings  to  your  ear — if  the  Doctrine  be 
such  as  you  believe  and  love — the  Command  not  grievous — 
the  Invitation  such  as  you  dare  not  refuse — and  if,  of  con- 
sequence, you  embrace  and  rest  upon  the  Promise — and 
acquiesce  in  the  Threat — then,  I  repeat  it,  what  barrier  is 
there  between  the  heart  and  salvation  ?  No  other  salvation 
is  offered,  no  other  possible  to  a  sinner.  And  Jesus  Christ 
came,  and  laboured,  and  died,  and  revived  for  a  very  differ- 
ent end  from  that  you  covet,  if  you  desire  any  other  ! 

The  view  then  which  we  have  taken  of  the  Gospel,  if  sub- 
stantially correct,  settles  the  question,  for  each  of  us,  whether 
thjre  exists  at  this  time,  a  controversy  between  him  and 
God.  Whether  Jesus  Christ,  by  the  Gospel,  has  effected  a 
reconciliation  between  the  Father  and  his  heart ;  or  whether 
God  and  he  be  still  at  variance.  Nor  can  the  question  be 
fairly  evaded — for  Christ  himself  has  already  decided  the 
previous  question,  whether  a  man  may,  at  the  same  time, 
love  the  Father  and  make  no  terms  with  the  Son,  by  saying 
peremptorily, — "  he  that  hateth  me,  hateth  my  Father 
also."  What  then  must  be  the  depravity  of  his  heart  and 
how  certainly  is  he  in  a  state  of  condemnation^  who  does  not 
love  the  Gospel ! 


SERMON  II. 


estimate  op  the  worlds  morality, 

Mark,  x.  21. 

Jesus  beholding  him,  loved  him  ;  and  said  unto  him.  One  thing 
thou  lackest. 

A  HE  case  stated  in  the  narrative  of  which  this  passage  is 
a  part,  is  a  case  of  every  week's  occurrence.  It  is  the  case 
of  thousands  who  are  this  day  before  the  altar  of  God — of 
every  man,  who,  instead  of  asking  life,  in  the  humble  and 
fervent  spirit  of  the  publican,  comes  running  to  Jesus  with 
the  self-righteous  enquiry — "What  lack  I  yet?" 

It  is  a  case,  however,  which  demonstrates,  that  a  man's 
character  may  be  of  very  fair  exterior,  while  utterly  destitute 
of  goodness  in  the  eye  of  God.  That  he  may  be  able  to  say, 
in  fancied  sincerity,  when  the  commandments  are  read  to 
him,  "  all  these  things  have  I  kept  from  my  youth  up,"  and 
still  possess  that  temper,  and  abide  under  that  condemna- 
tion, which  exclude  a  man  from  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
Nay,  that  in  all  his  manifestations,  he  may  appear  to  de- 
serve the  approbation,  and  love  of  mankind,  and  still  lack 
the  one  thing,  for  want  of  which,  this  young  man  was  re- 
proved of  his  Lord,  and  sent  away  sorrowing. 

But  the  case  before  us,  furnishes  another  thought,  not  un- 
worthy of  consideration.     It  involves  the  sentiment,  that  the 


14  SERMON  II. 

moral  excellence,  recommended  and  enjoined  in  the  two  ta- 
bles of  the  law,  is  so  consummate,  that,  to  a  good  heart,  its 
very  appearance  is  captivating  ;  and  that  such  a  heart  will 
bear  testimony  to  this  truth,  by  throwing  around  the  subject 
of  seeming  loveliness  the  arms  of  its  warmest  affection.  This 
is  the  natural  operation  of  that  "charity"  which  "hopeth  all 
things,"  not  forbidden  by  evidence,  and  of  which  Jesus 
Christ  is,  in  all  his  conduct,  so  excellent  a  model."  He  saw 
in  this  young  man  the  appearance  of  such  excellence,  and  no 
sooner  did  he  behold  it,  than  he  "  loved  him." 

But  the  same  charity  which  carried  Christ  such  a  length 
on  the  one  hand,  moved  him  on  the  other,  to  put  the  moral- 
ity of  the  youth  to  the  proof — to  bring  these  appearances  to 
the  touchstone,  by  which  Christian  morality  and  this  world's 
righteousness  are  distinguished  :  and  thus  to  give  practical 
evidence,  that  the  same  "  charity"  which  "hopeth  all  things, 
rejoj&eih"  only  "in  the  truth" 

We  can  do  no  better  service  for  those  who  sustain  the 
same  character  with  this  man,  than  to  hold  up  this  test  be- 
fore them  ;  that  in  this  mirror  they  may  see,  there  is  "  one 
thing"  wanting  in  their  morality,  and  that  with  all  their 
loveliness,  in  our  eye,  as  well  as  their  own,  the  deject  of  that 
one  destroys  their  title  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 

Let  them  observe  then,  that  the  subject  of  our  contempla- 
tion was  one  of  the  world's  best  men — as  perfect  an  exhibi- 
tion of  the  virtue  of  unsanctified  hearts,  as  poor  human  na- 
ture ever  made  ;  as  perfect  at  least,  as  ever  fell  under  our 
observation.  The  claim  of  this  man  to  goodness,  was  as 
well  founded,  as  that  of  any  one,  whose  righteousness  is  of 
the  law,  and  of  the  will  of  the  flesh,  rather  than  of  God  : 
and  yet,  he  was  the  subject  of  Christ's  condemnation.  His 
claim  to  the  character  of  an  innocent  man — a  good  man, 
was  as  well  supported  as  that  of  any  youth  unborn  of  the 
Spirit,  and  yet,  as  appears  in  the  sequel,'  his  righteousness, 
when  brought  to  the  test  of  forsaking   all  and  following 


SERMON  II.  15 

Christ,  proved  to  be  founded  in  mere  selfishness.  His  in- 
nocence involved  idolatry,  and  his  goodness,  brought  into 
the  light  of  the  sun,  was  transient  "as  the  morning  cloud, 
and  the  early  dew."  If  it  were  indeed  so,  and  our  youth 
have  no  other  ground  of  acceptance  with  God  ;  and  our  old 
men,  a  righteousness  which  can  no  better  bear  the  test — 
then,  a  nation  of  such  men  might  have  been  crowded  into 
Sodom,  and  not  have  had  righteousness  enough  to  have 
delivered  the  city. 

The  imaginary  triumph,  therefore,  which  the  world's  moral 
man  enjoys  over  the  Christian,  whose  appearance  may  some- 
times be  more  exceptionable,  is  altogether  premature.  He 
forgets  the  principle  established  by  our  Lawgiver,  that  it  is 
very  possible  a  man  may  seem  to  have  kept  the  law  "from 
his  youth  up,"  and  yet  have  nothing  of  the  righteousness  by 
which  a  sinner  is  justified.  He  forgets  too,  in  taking  to 
himself  the  honors  of  such  a  triumph  over  the  fallen  Da- 
vid, and  Noah,  and  Moses,  that  God  acknowledges  for  them, 
a  righteousness,  in  which  he  has  no  interest,  and  a  righteous- 
ness in  them,  of  which  he  has  not  a  tittle ;  and  that  while 
they  stand  on  a  foundation  which  will  survive  the  wreck  of 
time,  and  which  the  tempest  of  the  great  day  .of  God's 
wrath  cannot  shake,  his  boasted  edifice  is  built  upon  the 
sand.  He  should  have  suspended  his  triumph,  till  he  had 
demonstrated  the  error  of  the  inspired  sentiment,  that  he 
who  builds  his  hope  on  the  righteousness  of  the  law,  can 
sustain  the  ground  of  that  hope  only  by  showing,  that 
against  this  law,  he  has  never,  even  in  one  point,  offended — 
since,  if  he  has  transgressed  only  one  of  the  least  of  the  com- 
mandments, God  will  reckon  him  guilty  of  all.  Comparing, 
then,  the  rebuke  in  the  text,  with  this  decision,  instead  of 
glorying  in  his  virtue,  we  should  hear  him  exclaiming,  with 
Isaiah — "  1  am  undone,  for  I  am  a  man  of  unclean  lips  !" 
Or  saying  with  Paul,  "  0  wretched  captive  of  sin  !  who  shall 


16  SERMON  II. 

deliver  me !"  We  should  see  him,  with  the  man  of  Uz,  sitting  ia 
sackcloth  and  self-abhorrence — repenting  in  dust  and  ashes. 
We  have  now  come  to  the  point  on  which,  the  question 
we  are  to  settle,  principally  turns.  We  do  not  hesitate  to 
admit,  that  this  man's  morality  has  in  it  an  appearance  of 
loveliness.  We  do  not  mean  to  detract  an  iota  from  the 
distinction,  to  which  the  honest  man  is  entitled,  over  the 
knave — the  beneficent  and  good  tempered  man,  over  the 
churl — the  man  of  truth  and  sobriety  over  the  drunkard, 
glutton  and  common  liar,  and  the  decorous  in  speech  and 
manners  over  the  wanton  and  profane. — We  do  not  mean 
to  say,  that  there  is  not  deservedly,  a  very  broad  line  of  dis- 
tinction, between  the  palpable  sabbath  breaker,  and  him 
who  seems  to  regard  the  day  to  the  Lord — between  the 
parent,  provident  of  all  the  means  of  temporal  comfort,  and 
eternal  happiness  for  his  household,  and  the  parent,  careless 
and  negligent  of  their  present  and  future  good — between 
frugality  and  profligacy,  compassion  and  hardheartedness, 
between  the  man  who  follows,  and  him  who  refuses  to  fol- 
low the  dictates  of  his  own  conscience — between  an  exterior 
habitually  fair  and  its  opposite.  But  the  question  is,  whether 
in  the  measurement  of  this  morality,  by  the  standard  either 
of  Moses,  or  of  Christ,  it  amounts  to  righteousness  9 — whether 
either  in  the  scales  of  truth  and  grace,  or  of  law,  it  is  right? 
This  is  the  only  question. — For  if  it  is  not,  if  it  come  not 
up  to  one  or  the  other  of  these  standards,  it  is  not  righteous- 
ness at  all;  and  the  one  character  is  as  far  from  the  Divine 
acceptance  as  the  other. 

The  claim  we  are  now  examining  is  under  the  Law  alone; 
and  if  this  morality  is,  in  all  respects,  such  as  the  law  demands, 
then,  its  subject  not  only  stands  acquitted  of  sin,  in  the 
judgment  of  his  fellow  creatures,  but  wants  nothing  to  enti- 
tle him  to  justification  in  the  eye  of  his  God. — But  if  it  have 
one  defect,  in  spiritx  matter  or  form,  then,  for  whatever  else, 
it  may  be  valued,  it  is  utterly  worthless   for  justification. 


SERMON  H.  17 

Should  it  be  found,  however,  instead  of  a  defect  in  measure, 
to  want  the  very  nature  of  righteousness — if  in  fact  it  be  but 
a  finely  polished,  and  well  dressed  statue — a  body  without  a 
soul — then,  it  is  obvious,  the  claim  of  its  subject  is  lost,  and 
his  expectation  of  acceptance  for  the  loveliness  of  his  moral- 
ity, perishes  at  once. 

Now  Jesus  Christ  has  taught  us  that  this  is  the  case  :  for 
while  he  affirms  that  the  law  demands  all  the  soul,  he  shows 
that  this  man's  keeping  of  the  law  had  no  soul  in  it ;  and  that 
his  heart  and  his  morality  looked  to  very  different  objects. 
The  one,  had  the  appearance  of  the  righteousness  of  the  law, 
the  other,  went  after  its  covetousness,  and  was  therefore  a 
palpable  violation  of  the  law.  But  Christ  assures  us,  that 
the  very  spirit  of  the  law,  that  without  which  we  cannot  ap- 
proach the  righteousness  it  demands — is  the  very  thing 
which  this  young  man's  morality  wanted  ;  and  that  without 
this  one  thing,  though  he  were  an  angel  for  knowledge,  a 
saint  in  compassion,  and  a  very  martyr  in  his  sacrifices,  he 
would  still  be  nothing  before  God.  Hear  hew  the  Lord  of 
the  conscience  has  summed  up  the  duties  of  the  ten  com- 
mandments of  the  law.  "  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy 
God,  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  strength,,  and  with 
all  thy  mind,  and  thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself. 
Do  this,  and  thou  shalt  live."  Have  you  found  virtue  such 
as  this,  in  the  morality  which  this  world's  best  man  has  pro- 
duced ?  Do  you  find  such  in  the  example  before  us  ?  On 
the  contrary,  Christ  only  puts  it  to  the  moderate  proof  of 
giving  up  its  devotedness  to  earth,  and  leaving  all  for  him, 
and,  like  the  leaves  of  the  fruitless  fig  tree,  all  its  righteous- 
ness withers  away.  He  did  not  demand  of  the  young  man, 
the  relinquishment  of  any  thing  more  than  corruptible  pos- 
sessions, in  proof  of  his  love  to  God,  and  yet,  even  this  de- 
mand was  greater  than  his  morality  could  answer.  This  at 
once  betrayed  the  object  of  his  supreme  affection,  and 
though  it  be  of  no  consequence  to  the  argument  what  that 


18  SERMON  II. 

object  is,  so  it  be  not  God,  it  demonstrates  the  insufficiency 
of  all  morality  which  has  not  this  religious  principle  for  its 
basis.  There  was  something  he  loved  more  than  God  ;  and 
therefore,  since  supreme  love  to  him  is  the  least  the  law  de- 
mands, and  will  ever  accept,  he  was  fairly  convicted  of  a 
total  destitution  of  the  righteousness  which  he  affected  to 
have  possessed  from  his  youth. 

Does  the  salvation  proposed  in  the  Gospel,  abrogate  the 
law  ? — Does  it  annul  this  principle  of  the  law  ?  On  the  con- 
trary, it  establishes  it.  It  does  indeed  wave  the  measure  of 
personal  righteousness  which  the  law  exacts,  but  the  nature 
of  the  moral  excellence  required  by  it — the  principle  of  su- 
preme love  to  God — the  spirit  of  the  law — is  retained,  in 
the  scheme  of  salvation  by  grace ;  and,  indeed,  is  the  very 
thing  to  which  the  Gospel  restores  us.  Therefore,  as  we 
are  hereafter  to  show,  the  morality  of  this  young  man,  was 
as  unlike  the  righteousness  required  by  the  Gospel,  as  it  was 
remote  from  that  enjoined  in  the  law. 

I  am  aware  that  there  is  something  extremely  mortifying, 
and  even  revolting  to  our  natures,  in  being  set  down,  in  re- 
gard to  justification,  with  pirates  and  prostitutes,  and  in 
taking  rank,  as  regards  legal  obedience,  with  thieves  and 
publicans,  after  we  have  been  at  the  pains  to  avoid  their 
crimes,  and  to  adorn  our  lives  with  a  graceful  and  accom- 
plished morality.  But  if  it  be  an  unquestionable  verity, 
that  Our  righteousness  comes  not  up  to  the  standard  of 
Divine  erection,  and  if  it  be  no  more  of  the  nature  of  holi- 
ness than  theirs,  why  may  not  the  eye  of  God,  without  being 
evil,  discern  the  fact?  And  why  is  it  not  just  in  God  to  give 
to  all  unrighteousness  its  own  name,  and  its  proper  condem- 
nation ?  If  my  alleged  justice,  have  no  other  ^source,  than 
that  exactness  of  distribution  which  is  obsei'ved  among 
thieves  and  pirates,  in  the  division  of  their  plunder — if  my 
compassion  to  my  neighbor,  have  no  higher  character  than 
that  animal  instinct  which  leads  the  herd  to  express  the  cries 


SERMON  II.  10 

of  nature  over  one  of  its  species  in  distress — and  if  my  chas- 
tity, and  my  honor,  have  no  more  claim  to  a  holy  origin 
than  the  occasional  virtues  of  the  basest  of  mankind — why 
should  not  the  God  of  truth,  denounce  my  morality  as  un- 
righteousness, as  well  as  their  immorality,  and  consider  us 
alike  far  from  the  obedience  he  demands  ? 

Jesus  Christ,  we  should  remember,  will  hereafter  be  the 
Judge,  as  he  is  now  the  expositor,  of  his  own  laws.  He 
declares  the  sixth  commandment  violated  by  my  causeless 
anger,  as  truly  as  by  my  neighbor's  murderous  knife  :  and 
the  seventh,  as  certainly  by  my  libidinous  thoughts,  as  by 
his  practised  arts  at  seduction  :  and  the  eighth,  by  my  neg- 
lect to  relieve  my  poor  neighbor  from  distress,  as  by  taking 
away  the  property  of  the  rich.  And  though  the  crimes  of 
my  neighbor  may  be  more  obvious  to  men,  and  more  gross 
even  in  the  eye  of  God,  yet  Christ  affirms  my  want  of  obe- 
dience unto  righteousness,  to  be  no  less  real,  and  my  con- 
demnation no  less  certain  and  no  less  just,  though  my  demerit 
be  not  of  the  same  extent.  So  long  then,  as  my  morality 
extends  not  to  the  principle  of  the  law,  whether  I  feel  or  not, 
the  necessity  of  a  better  religion,  it  is  certain  I  have  no  more 
relish  for  it,  and  no  more  community  in  it,  than  the  more 
abandoned.  With  all  my  reputed  superiority  to  the  more 
openly  vicious,  I  should  enjoy  heaven  no  better  than  they,  were 
I  taken  thither.  With  my  present  taste  unamended,  my  con- 
versation would  be  turned  to  dumb  inquietude  ;  my  cheer- 
fulness to  sadness  ;  and  I  could  not  say,  with  the  children 
of  the  kingdom,  "  our  communion  is  with  the  Father,  and 
his  son  Jesus  Christ.'' — My  heart  is  not  on  the  side  of  evan- 
gelical virtue.  1  am  hostile  to  the  principles  of  the  law. 
The  glory  of  God  is  not  the  ultimate  end  of  my  actions,  and 
therefore  my  best  works  are  wicked — and  wicked  works 
prove  me  the  enemy  of  God. 

That  there  is  no  error  in  this  reasoning,  you  will  perceive 
by  a  due   attention  to  the  following  facts. — You  may  find 


20  SERMON  II. 

all  the  virtues  belonging  to  the  morality  in  question,  among 
one  or  another,  of  those   classes  of  men,    which  we  know  to 
be  excluded  from  the  character  of  the  righteous,  and  from 
the   kingdom  of  heaven.     The  drunkard,  for  example,  is 
often  found  to  possess   a  liberal    and  friendly  disposition. 
The  avaricious  man,  though  he  do  not  possess  this  generous 
temper,  is  strictly  temperate.     The  ambitious,  is  frequently 
the  most  condescending  and  courtly  of  men  :  and  profane 
men   are,  not  unfrequently,  scrupulously  exact  in   all  their 
commercial  intercourse.     Yet  all  these  are  stricken  indis- 
criminately from  the  list   of  good   men,  by  the  direction  of 
God.     Now  as  from  one  or  another  of  these  classes  of  un- 
godly men,  we  are  able  to  gather  every  specific  virtue  which 
is  found  in  the  morality  of  the  character  under  examination, 
and,  as   in  all   those   men  there  is  nothing  of  the  nature  of 
holiness,  it  is  very  easy  to  perceive,  that  their  junction  in  the 
same  man,  alters  not  their  nature,  and  can  in  no  case  consti- 
tute a  holy  creature.     The  basis  of  their  virtue  is  the  same, 
and  the  motives  from  which  their  morals  flow,  have  the  same 
character ;  and  if  this   man,   combining  all   the  excellence 
claimed  by  all  the  classes  of  men  known  to  be  excluded 
from  God's  kingdom,  if  this  man,  have  no  virtue,  not  found 
in  some  of  them,  then  it  is  certain  he  has  never  passed  the 
line  which  divides  the  carnal,  from  the  spiritual  world ;  and 
"  to  be  carnally  minded  is  death." 

If  there  be  no  sophistry  in  all  this,  (and  if  there  be,  we 
must  abandon  some  part  of  the  Word  of  God) — then  the 
morality  of  the  man  who  loves  and  serves  the  creature,  more 
than  the  Creator,  and  yet  unblushingly  asks,  "  what  lack  I 
yet,"  has  nothing  in  it  of  the  righteousness  which  the  law  of 
God  enjoins.  His  unrighteousness  is  manifest,  and  "  we 
know  that  all  unrighteousness  is  sin."  He  does  not  lack 
"  the  form"  but  he  wants  the  " power  of  godliness,"  and 
without  this  our  most  specious  actions  are  unholy.  While 
selfishness  pervades  all  his  motives,  and  is  in  truth  the  soul 


SERMON  II.  21 

of  his  morality,  a  man's  visible  actions  may  be  through  life  a 
fac-simile  of  the  visible  actions  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  his  soul 
remain  as  far  from  righteousness  unto  justification,  as  that  of 
the  hollow-hearted  disciple  who  betrayed  him  ;  or  as  that 
of  the  Sanhedrim,  who  called  him  an  impostor  and  hung 
him  on  a  tree. 

Who  does  not  perceive  then,  that  the  "  one  thing"  want- 
ing in  the  morality  of  this  amiable  young  man,  was  essential 
to  righteonsness  ?  And  who,  pretending  to  reason  and  com- 
mon sense,  does  not  know,  that  to  lack  any  thing  essential  to 
righteousness,  is  to  be  destitute  of  righteousness  altogether  ? 
This  young  man  then,  does  not  answer  the  inspired  descrip- 
tion of  a  friend  of  God.  He  was  not  a  disciple  of  Christ — he 
was  not  an  heir  of  heaven.  Every  suck  man  has  the  testimony 
of  Christ  that  he  pleases  God.  When  therefore,  the  young 
ruler  is  brought  10  his  bar,  though  he  have  the  testimony  of 
the  whole  world  to  the  loveliness  of  his  character,  we  see 
clearly  that  he  must  be  condemned,  because  he  has  nothing 
of  the  righteousness  which  the  law  demands. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  terms  on  which  mankind  are 
promised  justification  by  the  Gospel.  Let  us  see  if  the 
same  man,  with  all  his  embellishments,  finds  in  this  tent,  a 
bed  any  better  fitted  to  his  length,  or  a  covering,  in  which 
to  wrap  himself  more  securely,  or  a  pillow  on  which  he  can 
repose  in  stronger  assurance  that  his  peace  is  made  with 
God. 

He  must  have  been  inattentive  to  the  language  of  the  Gos- 
pel, or  have  entirely  mistaken  its  meaning,  who  has  not 
learned,  that  it  requires  a  righteousness  as  perfect,  as  that  re- 
quired by  the  law.  The  difference  between  the  law  and  the 
Gospel  is,  the  one  requires  personal  righteousness  without 
spot,  the  other  accepts  a  vicarious  righteousness  of  the  same 
character,  in  a  surety.  Who  has  not  seen  the  Apostle,  lev- 
elling the  whole  artillery  of  Sinai,  against  the  man,  who 
goes  about  to  establish  his   own  righteousness,  instead  of 


22  SERMON  II. 

submitting  himself  to  the  righteousness  of  God  !  who  has 
not  heard,  a  hundred  times,  from  the  lips  of  Jehovah's 
messengers,  that  in  the  Lord,  and  not  in  works  of  law,  man 
has  righteousness  and  strength  ;  and  that  "  there  is  salva- 
tion in  no  other !" — And  who  does  not  know,  that  this 
righteousness  of  Christ,  is  received  and  secured  by  faith 
alone,  that  God  might  be  just,  and  the  justifier  of  him  that 
believeth  in  Jesus.  In  language  plain  and  intelligible  to 
every  honest  mind,  it  is  settled,  that  faith  is  ever  to  be  one 
condition  of  a  sinner's  salvation — That  "  he  who  believeth 
shall  be  saved  ;"  and  that  whoever  can  make  good  his  claim 
to  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  is  no  longer  under  condemnation,  but 
has  "  passed  from  death  unto  life."  Now  every  child,  who 
is  able  to  put  these  thoughts  together,  must  perceive,  that 
God  has  abated  nothing  of  his  original  demand  on  man,  save 
that  when  the  law  was  impotent  to  give  life  to  the  trans- 
gressor, God  gave  it  to  him  through  his  Son  ;  "  that  the 
righteousness  of  the  law  might  thus  be  fulfilled  in  us,  who 
walk  not  after  the  flesh,  but  after  the  spirit."  Did  not  Je- 
sus Christ  pass  to  the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness,  and 
bring  in  for  the  believer  a  ground  of  acceptance  which  can 
no  more  sink  from  beneath  his  feet  ?  And  is  it  not  explicitly 
declared,  that  to  those  who  believe  in  him,  "there  is,"  for 
this  cause,  "no  condemnation"?  If  then,  righteousness 
come  not  by  the  law,  and  Christ  died  not  in  vain,  then  the 
believer  is  complete  in  him  ;  and  by  virtue  of  his  obedience 
unto  death,  is  as  just  before  God,  that  is,  as  free  from  legal 
condemnation,  as  if  he  had  personally  fulfilled  the  law's  de- 
mands. 

But,  it  is  to  be  remembered,  the  faith  which  takes  hold  of 
the  righteousness  of  Christ,  is  not  a  dead  and  barren  specu- 
lation. It  has  the  property  of  a  living  and  restoring  power. 
It  puts  into  the  morality  of  its  subject,  an  animating  and  pu- 
rifying leaven,  which  raises  the  soul  to  God,  and  diffuses 
through  the  whole  man  the  spirit  of  obedience.      It  subdues 


SERMON  II.  23 

the  dominion  of  that  carnal  mind,  which  docs  its  works  to 
be  seen  of  men.  It  is  a  faith  which  works  by  love ;  and 
which  brings  to  the  heart  that  great  peace,  which  is  expressly 
said  to  be  characteristic  of  them  who  love  the  law ;  that 
peace,  which  never  fails  to  accompany  spiritual-mindedness. 
It  secures  the  life  of  the  soul,  by  uniting  it  to  Christ,  and 
by  ensuring  that  repentance  from  dead  works,  which  is  re- 
quisite to  the  acceptable  service  of  the  living  God.  So  that 
instead  of  disparaging  good  works,  as  the  doctrine  of  justifi- 
cation by  faith,  is  said  by  ignorant  men  to  do,  it  is  that  one 
thing,  essential  to  constitute  any  work  a  living  sacrifice,  ho- 
ly and  acceptable  to  God.  "Without  me,"  said  Jesus,  "ye 
can  do  nothing" — "  but  he  that  believeth  in  me,  hath  life, 
and,"  continuing  to  believe,  "shall  never  die." 

For  all  this,  we  have  the  warrant  of  God's  word.  But 
where  has  he  said,  if  ye  possess  that  heartless  morality, 
which  the  infidel  practices  no  less  than  you,  that  you  shall 
be  saved  ?  When  did  he  say,  and  to  whom  did  he  say  it — 
that  to  pass  with  reputation  in  the  church,  is  enough  to  con- 
stitute you  righteous  in  his  sight  ?  Instead  of  this,  he  calls 
on  every  man  to  supply  in  himself  that  one  essential  thing, 
by  denying  himself,  taking  his  cross,  and  following,  Christ. 
The  young  man,  with  all  that  loveliness  of  manners,  and  all 
that  exemption  from  vice,  and  all  that  sterling  integrity, 
with  which  men  of  the  world  compliment  each  other,  could 
not  endure  this.  The  way  of  righteousness  by  the  Gospel, 
as  well  as  by  the  law,  was  too  strait  and  too  refined  for 
him  ;  and  more  sober,  but  no  better  than  before,  he  went 
away  grieved,  and  unfit  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  The 
"  author  and  finisher  of  the  faith,"  could  not  call  him  his 
disciple  as  he  was,  and  he  would  not  be  prevailed  with  to 
humble  himself  to  the  terms,  by  which  alone,  any  sinner  can 
attain  to  eternal  life. 

Now  the  grand  defect  of  this  man's  morality  was,  that  he 
loved  something,  (no  matter  what)  more  than  God.     Was 


24  SERMON  II.  > 

he  not  then  unreconciled  to  the  Law,  which  forbids  man  to 
love  any  thing  more  than  God  ?  And  was  he  not  destitute, 
too,  of  the  faith  which  Christ  demands? — the  faith  which 
works  by  love  to  that  law,  and  overcomes  the  world — the 
world,  ever  idolized  by  the  wicked  ?  How  then,  I  pray  you, 
did  the  Gospel  help  to  prop  up  the  wretched  edifice,  which 
tottered  to  its  base  at  the  thunders  of  the  Law,  and  in  the 
ruins  of  which,  he  would  sooner  be  buried,  than  flee  for  re- 
fuge to  the  hope  set  before  him  in  the  Gospel  ? 

Thus  fatal  to  all  this  world's  morality,  are  the  precepts  of 
the  Law,  and  the  Doctrines  of  Christ.  If  it  fall  on  that 
rock,  it  is  broken  ;  if  it  be  fallen  upon  by  this  rock,  it  is 
ground  into  powder.  He  who  builds  upon  such  morality 
the  hope  of  acceptance,  virtually  makes  God  such  an  one 
as  himself;  and  he  cannot,  ought  not,  will  not,  bear  from  a 
creature — a  sinful  creature — an  indignity  like  this.  The 
man  who  persists  in  offering  him  such  an  indignity,  is,  on  the 
most  favorable  supposition,  in  a  spiritual  lethargy  ;  and  the 
language  addressed  to  him  by  Jesus  Christ  is,  "Awake,  thou 
that  sleepest,  and  arise  from  the  dead,  and  I  will  give  thee 
light."  "Young  man!  I  say  unto  thee  arise,"  and,-nO 
longer  content  in  your  conformity  to  this  world,  "be  trans- 
formed by  the  renewing  of  your  mind,  that  you  may  prove 
what  is  that  good  and  acceptable  and  perfect  will  of  God." 

The  morality  we  have  contemplated,  flows  from  a  foun- 
tain, which  has  filled  our  world  with  confusion  and  misery. 
It  is  a  morality,  in  view  of  whose  source,  the  soul  of  Christ 
was  exceeding  sorrowful,  even  unto  death.  It  produced 
such  a  spectacle  as  shocked  even  Roman  insensibility,  and 
at  which  the  sun,  and  stars,  and  rocks  and  graves,  gave 
signs  of  mourning  and  wo.  It  is  the  morality  of  a  Pharisee, 
which  tithes  mint,  and  annise  and  cummin,  and  neglects  the 
weightier  matters  of  Judgment  and  Faith,  of  Mercy  and  the 
love  of  God.  It  js  a  morality  which  stands  erect  in  the 
midst  of  the  Temple,  and  thanks  God  for  its  superior  lustre. 


SERMON  II.  25 

while  draining  Christ  of  his  heart's-blood,  and  leaving  it  to 
Publicans,  who  make  no  such  pretensions  to  legal  righteous- 
ness, to  avail  themselves  of  that  blood,  and  to  go  in  upon  it 
to  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  All  this  notwithstanding,  it  is  a 
morality  with  which  many  a  sinner  can  lay  down  his  head, 
and  lull  himself  under  the  altar,  and  retire  to  his  ordinary 
concerns,  as  fearless  and  inconsiderate  of  the  wrath  to  come, 
as  if  it  sealed  his  pardon,  or  placed  him  in  the  number  of 
them  who  need  no  repentance,  because  they  went  never 
astray.  This  is  a  morality,  unbeliever  !  which  you  can 
practise,  but  which  will  have  no  advocate  before  the  tribunal 
of  Justice,  where  its  deluded  subject  is  soon  to  hear  the  last 
sentence  the  wicked  will  ever  hear  from  the  mouth  of  the 
living  God. 

If,  then,  there  be  in  this  assembly  a  single  soul,  who  has 
nothing  better  than  this,  in  which  to  appear  before  Jesus 
Christ,  and  who,  with  self-complacency,  can  rush  in  his  rags 
into  the  presence  of  his  Judge,  and  demand  of  him,  "  what 
lack  I  yet  ?" — I  entreat  that  soul  to  consider,  whether  his  be 
not  exactly  the  condition  of  the  man  who,  thinking  himself 
to  be  something  when  he  is  nothing,  deceiveth  himself.  And 
I  beg  of  him,  while  he  attempts  to  expound  the  enigma,  that 
the  "  heart  is  deceitful  above  all  things,  and  desperately 
wicked,"  instead  of  throwing  away  any  thing  which  is  lovely 
in  his  appearance,  and  instead  of  abandoning  the  form  of 
right  actions,  only  to  withdraw  his  confidence  from  them,  and 
to  add  to  the  right  form,  the  infusion  of  that  holy  principle, 
which  alone  constitutes   actions  good,  in  the  sight  of  God. 

And  if  there  be  any  one  among  that  sex,  who  have  most 
of  this  native  and  acquired  loveliness,  and  who  are  most  sus- 
ceptible of  flattery  ; — if  in  short  there  be  one,  in  this  assem- 
bly, of  any  sex,  or  rank,  or  age,  depending  upon  doings  or 
appearances,  such  as  flattered  the  hopes  of  the  young  ruler, 
and  who  imagines  because  he  is  not  grossly  vicious,  like 
others,  that  his  heart  is  right  with  God — T  beg  him  to  see 
4 


26  SERMON  II. 

that  the  righteousness  on  which  he  so  depends,  is  like  the 
props  and  blockings  of  the  ship  upon  the  stocks,  the  very 
obstacle  to  her  embarking  on  the  element  for  which  she  was 
built ;  and  that  until  this  is  loosed  and  swept  away,  and  she 
be  raised  above  it,  however  thoroughly  her  ways  are  smooth- 
ed, and  however  capacious,  and  noble,  and  sustaining  the 
richest  freight,  she  will  be  as  far  from  answering  the  end 
of  her  existence,  as  if  every  timber  were  still  standing  in  its 
native  forest,  and  every  bolt  still  lying  in  its  native  bed  of 
Ore  : — And  though,  you  put  on  all  her  tackle,  and  spread  all 
her  canvass,  and  give  her  all  the  breeze  which  would  be 
necessary  to  bear  her  to  her  destined  port,  she  will  never" 
move  at  all  toward  the  haven.  The  artificer  will  have  be- 
stowed the  labor,  and  the  proprietor  incurred  the  expense  in 
vain  ;  and  all  the  expectations  of  the  beholders  will  have 
been  gotten  up  like  this  fair  fabric  of  human  device,  only  to 
perish  on  the  stocks. 

Whoever,  then,  will  escape  so  unwelcome,  so  intolerable 
a  disappointment,  let  them  seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God 
and  his  righteousness.  Let  them  imbibe  the  spirit  of  him, 
into  whose  gates  they  would  enter,  and  in  whose  immortal 
pleasures  and  honors  they  would  partake — for  "  if  any  man 
have  not  the  spirit  of  Christ,  he  is  none  of  his." 


SERMON  III 

©BEDIENCE  ESSENTIAL  TO  SALVATION. 

Revelation,  xxii.  14. 

Blessed  are  they  that  do  Ids  commandments,  that  they  may  have 
right  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  may  enter  in  through  the  gates 
into  the  city. 

X  HERE  would  be  little  cause  for  apprehension  that  there 
are  few  chosen  to  salvation,  might  every  one  who  saith  Lord, 
Lord,  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.     Crowded  to  over- 
flowing, would  be  the  mansions  of  the  just,  might  the  claim 
to  acceptance  be  universally  acknowledged,  "  we  have  eaten 
and  drunk   in  thy  presence,   and   prophesied  in  thy  name, 
and    in    thy    name    done   many    wonderful    works."     But, 
amidst  the  immense  diversity  of  foundations  on  which  men 
build  their  hopes,  there  is  only  one  which  will   stand ;  and 
among  all  the  variety  of  evidence  relied  upon,  that  they  are 
building  on  that  foundation,  there  is  but  one  species  of  proof 
which  will  be  admitted  in  the  court  of  heaven.     The  founda- 
tion of  hope,  is  the  atonement  ofChrist  ;  the  evidence  of  be- 
ing built  on  that  foundation,  is  obedience  to  Christ. 

It  is  not  then  the  man,  who  in  a  vision  or  a  trance,  has 
been  caught  up  to  paradise,  and  heard  unspeakable  words — 
not  he  whose  relation  of  experiences,  draws  tears  from  every 
eye,  and  most  easily  wins  the  charity  of  the   church — not 


28  SERMON  III. 

the  man  who  has  astonished  the  world  by  splendid  acts  of 
beneficence — not  he  who  has  compassed  sea  and  land,  to 
make  proselytes  to  his  sect,  or  whose  preaching  has  been  at- 
tended with  wonderful  effects  on  the  bodies  and  the  passions 
of  men,  to  whom  is  promised  the  crown  of  glory.  That 
man  of  trances,  may  have  had  the  heart  of  a  sorcerer.  That 
relater  of  experiences,  may  be  found  a  deceiver..  That  prodi- 
gy of  generosity,  may  have  given  alms  only  to  be  seen  of 
men.  That  powerful  preacher,  may  have  been  an  unbeliever, 
and  that  zealous  laborer  for  proselytes,  two-fold  more  a 
child  of  delusion,  than  the  subject  of  his  conversion. 

One  would  think,  from  what  he  beholds  of  the  religious 
world — their  discordances  of  sentiment,their  difference  of  rites, 
their  variety  of  worship,  and  the  zeal  of  each  for  the  peculari- 
ities  of  his  sect,  that  there  were  as  many  Gods  and  Saviours, 
as  there  are  religious  distinctions,  and  that  the  path  to  heaven 
is  as  manifold  as  their  Gods.  A  thorough  examination 
of  the  scriptures,  with  a  humble  and  prayerful  spirit,  brings 
us,  however,  to  the  conclusion,  that  there  is  but  one  "  name 
given  under  heaven,  whereby  we  can  be  saved,"  and  that 
the  most  simple  and  infallible  criterion  of  a  title  to  his  salva* 
tion,  is  obedience  to  his  commands.  To  the  exclusion  of  this 
test,  no  other  can  be  genuine.  This,  comprehends  every 
other. — Him,  who  saith  he  loveth,  or  even  knoweth  God, 
and  keepeth  not  his  commandments,  inspiration  pronounceth 
a  deceiver,  and  into  the  holy  city,  we  know,  enteretb 
nothing  that  maketh  a  lie. 

But  obedience  is  not  possible  without  a  rule.  And  no 
rule,  by  which  we  can  please  God,  is  given  us,  other  than 
the  precepts  and  example  of  Jesus  Christ.  Without  him., 
we  have  no  system  of  truth  to  believe,  and  without  faith  in 
such  a  system,  no  foundation  for  obedience  exists.  All  that 
passes  for  religion  in  the  world,  other  than  what  is  compre- 
hended in  obedience  to  Jesus  Christ  our  Lawgiver,  is  mere 
delusion,  and  all  hopes  of  future  happiness  drawn  from  any 


SERMON  111.  29 

other  source  than  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ,  like  the  base- 
less fabric  of  a  vision.  They  may  form  a  pleasant  amuse- 
ment for  a  night,  but  with  the  slumbers  and  the  darkness, 
those  hopes  shall  flee  away,  and  leave  not  a  trace  behind. 

In  the  discussion  of  this  subject,  I  propose  to  show  First, 
That  obedience  to  Christ  is  necessary  to  prove  us  his  Dis- 
ciples. 

Secondly,  that  the  connection  between  obedience,  and  a 
right  to  expect  sal\  ation,  is  a  connection  of  Grace. 

And,  in  the  third  place,  that  obedience  is  of  essential  im- 
portance to  happiness. 

I.  First,  the  proof  of  being  Christ's  Disciples — They  do 
his  commandments.  There  are  not  wanting  teachers  of 
religion  who  imagine,  that  the  Doctrine  of  Justification  by 
Faith,  is  subversive  of  the  practice  of  holiness.  We  are 
happy  to  be  able,  in  the  simplicity  of  Christ,  to  overthrow 
such  an  imagination.  Throughout  the  Bible  it  is  declared 
with  equal  explicitness  and  fulness,  that  to  do  the  will  of  God, 
in  opposition  to  the  will  of  the  flesh,  it  is  necessary  that  we 
believe  in  his  Son — and  that  to  do  it  in  singleness  of  heart, 
as  unto  Christ,  in  opposition  to  a  mere  seeming  performance, 
is  the  only  proof  of  the  genuineness  and  purity  of  our  faith. 
The  prevailing  sects  in  the  day  of  Christ's  personal  ministry, 
observed  merely  the  letter  of  the  commandments  ;  and  be- 
cause they  affected  obedience  to  God,  while  their  hearts 
were  far  from  him,  he  denounced  them  as  "  a  seed  of  evil 
doers  and  a  generation  of  vipers."  God  has  directed  that 
we  do  all  things  heartily  as  unto  the  Lord,  and  in  the  name 
of  Christ. — Disobedience  is  a  practical  contradiction  of  this 
rule.  Nothing  is  of  the  nature  of  obedience  to  God,  which 
is  not  conformed  to  the  spirit  as  well  as  letter  of  the  law ; 
and  this  conformity  cannot  exist  without  love.  No  acts,  or 
exercises,  therefore,  of  a  heart  destitute  of  love,  (since  they 
regard  not  the  spirit  of  the  law,)  can  partake  of  the  nature 


30  SERMON  III. 

of  obedience.  They  are  not  a  doing  of  the  commandments, 
however  similar  they  may  be  in  their  form,  or  exterior  char- 
acter, to  the  letter  of  the  precept. 

But  why  talk  of  doings,  say  you,  when  man  is  to  be  jus- 
tified by  his  faith  ?    Plainly  because  doing  is  not  opposed  to 
believing,   but  believing  is  a  doing  of  one  great  command- 
ment of  God.      True  faith,  is  an  act  of  the  highest  obedience, 
and  as  such,  it  is  a  duty  founded  on  that  command,  without 
whose  performance,  it  is  impossible  to  please  him.     For  this, 
said  Christ,  '  is  the   Father's   will,  that  ye  believe   on  the 
name  of  the  Son  of  God,  and  that  every  one  who  believeth 
on  him,  should    have   everlasting  life.'— But  in   any  other 
view,  than   that  of  an    act    of  obedience    to    God,  faith  is 
neither  a    virtue,  nor  a  criterion  of  virtue.     And  though  I 
have  all  faith,  so  as  to  remove  mountains,  and  even  to   suf- 
fer martyrdom,  it  profitelh  me  nothing.     Let  the   man  who 
is  destitute  of  the  spirit  of  obedience  to  God,  tell  me  he  be- 
lieves, and  1  will  answer  him — the  Devils  also  believe.     Let 
him  say  he  believes  and  was  baptized,  and  therefore  accord- 
ing to  the  word  of  God,   must  be  saved — I  answer,  Simon 
Magus  also  believed,  and  was  baptized,  but  having  nothing 
of  the  spirit  of  obedience  was  pronounced  to  be  "  in  the  gall 
of  bitterness,  and  bond  of  iniquity."     Jesus  Christ  owns  re- 
lationship to  no  man,  who  offers  any  reason  for  his   accept- 
ance, which  excludes  sincere  obedience  to  God,  and  a  doing 
of  his  will  from  the  heart.     "  Who  is   my  mother,  and  who 
are  my  brethren  ?     Whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  God,  the 
same  is  my  brother,  and  sister,  and  mother."     When,  there- 
fore, exulting  in  the  thought  of  being  the  parent  of  the  babe 
of  Bethlehem,  the  matron  exclaimed,    "  blessed  is   she  that 
bare  thee  ;"  Jesus  answered,  "  yea  rather,  .blessed  are  they 
that  hear  the  word  of  God  and   keep  it."     The  endearing 
and  indissoluble   union  between  Christ  and  his  disciples,    is 
constituted  by  a  unity  of  spirit  in  regard  to  the  will  of  God. 


SERMON  in.  31 

But  some  will  say,  that  this  is  life  eternal,  to  knoiv*  the 
true  God,  and  Jesus  Christ,  whom  he  has  sent.  True,  yet 
this  knowledge  is  not  a  mere  light  in  the  understanding,  like 
that  relating  to  human  science.  Men  not  unfrequently  take 
their  light  for  religion,  when  it  is  only  a  thing  of  the  head, 
while  obedience  is  of  the  heart ;  when  it  is  a  knowledge 
only  of  what  they  ought  to  be,  rather  than  of  what  they  are. 
It  is  the  application  of  knowledge,  to  the  end  for  which  it 
is  given,  and  this  alone,  which  renders  the  enlightened,  holy. 
Thus  to  apply  our  speculative  knowledge,  is  an  act  of  obe- 
dience ;  and  to  neglect  so  to  apply  it,  is  disobedience.  The 
servant  who  knew  his  Lord's  will,  and  did  it  not,  was  beaten 
with  many  stripes.  To  know,  without  corresponding  exer- 
cise and  action,  therefore,  is  not  to  comply  with  the  Divine 
will.  On  the  other  hand,  to  him  that  knoweth  to  do  right, 
and  doeth  it  not,  to  him  it  is  sin. 

It  was  to  men  who  hung  upon  the  lips  of  his  personal 
ministry,  Christ  said,  "  if  ye  knoiv  these  things,  happy  are 
ye  if  ye  do  them."  Many  whose  heads  are  stored  with  the 
precepts  of  the  Gospel,  bear  testimony  to  the  fact,  that  such 
happiness  is  not  theirs.  As  faith  is  the  evidence  of  things 
unseen,  and  rests  on  the  testimony  of  Christ,  whpm  the 
Father  commands  men  to  hear,  and  is  therefore  of  the  nature 
of  obedience;  so  to  reduce  our  knowledge  of  christian  doc- 
trine and  precept  to  practice,  results  from  a  confidence  in 
Christ's  testimony,  and  is  therefore  of  the  nature  of  faith. 
Not  to  believe,  is  to  impeach  God's  veracity ;  not  to  obey,  is 
to  deny  Christ's  authority ;  and  both  these  are  daring  acts 
of  hostility,  against  the  Father  and  the  Son.  Fitly,  there- 
fore, did  Christ  give  us  this  criterion  of  our  discipleship — 

*  The  Author  might  have  shown  such  an  objector  his  ignorance  of  the 
use  of  language.  Indeed,  he  has  done  it  in  effect,  but  it  should  have  been 
done  more  explicitly.  In  the  language  of  John,  the  word  "  know"  is  used, 
by  synecdoche,  for  an  entire  reception  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ  ;  just  aB 
"  faith"  i3  used  by  the  sacred  writers,  not  only  for  simple  belief,  but  for 
the  sentiments  and  conduct  which  should  follow  from  believing. 


32  SERMON  III. 

"  ye  are  my  friends,  if  ye  do  whatsoever  I  command  you." 
For  there  is  no  man  without  his  creed  ;  none  utterly  desti- 
tute of  the  knowledge  of  his  duty.  But,  as  to  believe  the 
words  of  inspiration,  and  not  the  sense,  is  to  reject  the  sub- 
stance, and  rest  on  sound  ;  so  to  stand  trial  on  a  head  filled 
with  religious  knowledge,  without  a  heart  to  apply  it  to 
practice,  is  to  violate  our  obligation  in  the  very  act  of  ac- 
knowledging it.  With  such  men  the  Lawgiver  and  Saviour 
expostulates  in  language  such  as  this,  "  Why  call  ye  me 
Lord,  Lord,  and  do  not  the  things  which  I  say  ?"  And  the 
inference  of  the  Apostle  is — "  it  had  been  better  for  them, 
not  to  have  known  the  way  of  righteousness,  than,  having 
such  knowledge,  to  turn  away  from  the  holy  commandment 
which  was  delivered  them." 

Still,  to  the  evident  necessity  of  doing  his  commandments, 
others  will  offer  the  evasion,  that  God  has  made  promises  to 
good  affections;  and  that  to  their  convictions  of  sin,  and 
wretchedness  and  helplessness,  they  have  added  the  sighs  of 
sensibility,  and  the  sorrows  of  the  heart.  God  has  promised 
nothing  to  disobedience,  and  it  is  to  no  purpose  that  we 
have  religious  affections,  if  they  be  not  of  the  pure  and  holy 
character  which  he  has  enjoined.  Herod  heard  the  gospel 
gladly.  Judas  had  convictions  and  sorrows,  which  led  him 
to  repent  his  treachery.  Saul  confessed  that  he  had  done 
wrong.  Felix  was  moved  to  trembling  by  the  preaching  of 
the  Gospel.  And  even  Pharoah,  after  enduring  t}ie  tenth 
plague,  came  to  the  acknowledgment,  that  God  was  right- 
eous, but  that  he  and  his  people  were  wicked.  And  all  af- 
fections which  have  not  the  spirit  of  obedience  for  their  root, 
though  they  produce  flashes  of  joy,  and  streams  of  momen- 
tary pleasure,  and  persuade  men  that  they  are  the  favorites 
of  heaven,  will  soon  die  away,  and  leave  their  fond  and  de- 
luded subjects,  as  they  found  them,  poor  and  wretched  and 
blind  and  naked.  .  Even  the  heart  of  rock,  may  bring  forth 
such  promise  of  fruit,  and  the  foolish  virgin  thus  sleep  se- 


SERMON  III.  33 

turely,  without  a  supply  of  oil.  I  counsel  thee,  said  Christ, 
to  buy  of  me  treasures  that  never  fail.  Such  affections  are 
too  superficial,  to  be  rested  on  as  evidence  of  a  title  to  eter- 
nal life.  But  there  is  a  religious  affection,  which  will  afford 
a  shelter,  not  merely  in  the  summer's  gentle  heat,  but  in  the 
storm  and  flood,  which  sweeps  earth  from  her  foundations, 
and  buries  every  sand-based  edifice,  with  its  presumptuous 
tenant,  in  a  common  ruin.  It  is  known  by  its  fruits.  It 
not  only  cometh  to  Christ,  and  heareth  these  sayings  of  his, 
but  doeth  them.  Its  foundation  cannot  be  shaken — it  is 
laid  upon  the  rpck.  The  religious  tower  which  answers 
this  description,  is  at  all  times  a  refuge  and  a  defence.  Its 
possessor  is  serene  in  the  last  mighty  ruin.  He  has  meat  to 
eat,  when  the  field  and  the  vine  and  the  flocks  of  the  fold, 
supply  him  no  more  forever.  He  has  a  right  to '  the  tree  of 
life,  and  free  access  to  the  rivers  of  pleasure,  in  the  midst  of 
the  paradise  of  Cod. 

But  you  have  reformed  your  life,  and  this  is  satisfactory 
evidence  that  you  are  safe.  You  are  not  only  more  moral 
than  you  ivere,  but  more  so  than  other  men.  No  longer  an 
extortioner,  or  adulterer,  or  profaner  of  the  sabbath — you 
fast  oft,  and  give  alms  of  all  you  possess.  But  to  whom  is 
this  done — asks  the  Judge — have  ye  done  it  at  all  unto  me  ? 
Reformation  will  indeed  be  accepted,  provided  it  be  univer- 
sal. But  what  is  a  universal  reformation  ?  A  compliance 
with  the  demands  of  the  Gospel.  It  must  reach  the  heart, 
as  well  as  influence  the  life.  With  all  your  reforming,  may 
you  not  have  forgotten  to  purify  first,  the  inner  man,  and  to 
make  the  fountain  good  ?  This  is  Christ's  command  ;  and 
"  to  obey,  is  better  than  sacrifice,  and  to  hearken  than  the 
fat  of  rams."  Neither  a  partial  reformation,  nor  a  partial 
observance  of  some  of  the  precepts,  is  counted  obedience. 
Every  command  of  the  Gospel  is  of  the  same  authority,  and 
wherever  the  disposition  to  universal  righteousness  is  want- 
ing, there  the  spirit  of  obedience  is  not  found.  We  cannot 
5 


oi  SERMON  III. 

follow  Christ,  and  set  the  Gospel  against  the  law,  as  our  rule 
of  life  :  for  on  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  he  founded  all  his 
precepts  and  habits  of  life.  And  if  he  came  not  to  destroy 
the  rule,  he  came  to  restore  us  to  the  spirit  of  obedience  to 
the  law.  "If  ye  keep  my  commandments,  then  are  ye  my 
disciples  indeed,  and  shall  abide  in  my  love."  And  we  have 
this  confidence  in  the  Lord  concerning  the  Church,  said  the 
Apostle,  that  ye  both  do,  and  will  do,  the  things  we  have 
commanded  you.  Does  not  Christ  always  thus  distinguish, 
between  real  and  merely  nominal  disciples  ?  "Do  not  after 
their  works,  for  they  say,  hut  do  not"— They  act,  "to"  be  seen 
of  men." 

The  Apostles  followed  their  Master,  in  inculcating  the 
spirit  of  obedience,  in  opposition  to  that  barely  literal  ob- 
servance of  the  precept,  which  even  Baalam's  covetousness 
could  not  dispense  with.  "If  Balak  would  give  me  his 
house  full  of  silver  and  gold,  I  cannot  go  beyond  the  word 
of  the  Lord,  to  do  less  or  more,"  still,  for  the  love  of  the 
wages  of  unrighteousness,  he  taught  Balak  to  seduce  the 
people  of  God  to  sin  ;  and  there  he  stands,  a  conspicuous 
beacon  to  men,  glorying  in  their  conformity  to  the  law, 
while  utterly  destitute  of  the  spirit  towards  the  Lawgiver 
which  it  enjoins.  The  language  of  James  bears  directly  on 
this  point,  when  saying,  that  "he  is  the  man,  blessed  in  his 
deeds,  who  is  not  a  forgetful  hearer,  but  a  doer  of  the 
word" — and  when  adding,  that  the  faith  which  is  alone,  is 
no  evidence  at  all  of  a  Christian  temper — of  a  heart,  de- 
lighting in  the  commandments  of  God.  The  Apostle  Paul, 
impressed  with  the  same  view  of  the  subject,  demands  an 
inward  and  an  active  righteousness.  And,  to  the  same  end, 
the  Apostle  John  declares,  that  he  only  who  doeth  righteous- 
ness is  born  of  God,  or  is  in  fact  righteous  before  him. 
And,  to  put  the  doctrine  of  the  text  beyond  doubt,  we  have 
only  to  add,  that  we  cannot  even  offer  a  prayer,  in  the  spirit 
of  obedience,  and  iii  conformity  with  Christ's  direction,  but 


SERMON  III.  35 

by  saying — "  thy  will  be  done.''-  And  when,  in  the  process 
of  the  last  judgment,  it  shall  be  said  to  the  good  and  faithful 
servant — "  Well  done,  for  inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto 
these  my  brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto  me" — then,  ihe 
Universe  will  perceive,  to  the  joy  of  the  just,  and  to  the  con- 
fusion of  the  wicked,  that  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons,  but 
that  whatsoever  good  thing  any  man  hath  done,  the  same  he 
has  received  of  the  Lord ;  and  that  they  who  have  not 
obeyed  the  Gospel,  nor,  as  the  servants  of  Christ,  done  the 
will  of  God  from  the  heart,  shall  have  been  justly  accounted 
disobedient,  and  recompensed  according  to  their  works. 

Thus  30U  have  before  you,  in  the  actual  doing  of  the 
commandments,  the  evidence  of  an  obedient  temper — of  a 
disciple  of  Christ ;  and  of  consequence,  the  evidence  of  a 
title  to  eternal  life.  And  thus  we  have  it  settled,  by  infalli- 
ble witnesses,  that  the  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith  alone, 
through  the  righteousness  of  Christ,  is  perfectly  consistent 
with  a  judgment  according  to  our  works  ;  and  that  whoever 
declares  that  the  belief  of  that  doctrine  tends  to  licentious- 
ness, and  encourages  men  in  sin,  calumniates,  not  men,  bin 
God. 

II.  This  may  more  fully  appear,  by  stating,  in  the 
second  place,  the  connection  between  obedience,  and  the 
right  or  title  to  eternal  life.  No  sinner,  it  is  obvious,  can 
claim  any  thing  of  God  as  a  debt.  If  he  have  a  right  to  ex 
pect  salvation,  it  must  be  founded  upon  prowme.  If  he  have 
any  title  to  life,  it  must  be  derived  from  a  free-will  offering 
of  his  injured  Sovereign.  I  need  not  press  the  conscience, 
therefore,  with  arguments  to  convict  it,  that  if  there  be  any 
connection  between  obedience  to  God's  commandments,  and 
a  right  to  the  tree  of  life,  it  is  a  connection  of  Grace — of 
mere  Grace.  The  law  recognizes  no  transgressor  as  jusc 
before  God.  It  makes  no  provision  for  remission  of  sins. 
It  knows  of  no  title  to  righteousness,  acquired  by  the  deeds 
of  3  sinner.     The  obedience,  then,  of  which  we  have  treated. 


86  SERMON  III. 

is  not  known  in  law  ;  nor  the  title  to  the  heavenly  inherit- 
ance, connected  with  that  obedience.  But  if  the  inheritance, 
or  right,  come  not  by  the  Law,  it  must  be  of  Grace  :  for 
that  which  is  not  due,  is  by  necessity  a  gift ;  and  a  gift  pre- 
cludes the  idea  of  previous  obligation  on  the  part  of  him  who 
bestows  it.  The  right,  then,  is  acquired  by  a  Divine  con- 
stitution, superadded  to  the  Law.  It  is  a  right,  acquired 
for  man  by  purchase ;  and  conferred,  according  to  stipula- 
tions entered  into  by  the  Father  and  the  Son.  It  is  the 
right  of  a  prisoner  to  go  free,  upon  the  surety's  paying  the 
price  of  ransom.  To  the  sinner,  salvation,  of  consequence, 
is  a  free  gift  ;  while  to  the  mediator,  or  surety,  his  deliver- 
ance is  an  act  of  righteousness.  Christ,  however,  came  to 
redeem  us,  not  only  from  guilt,  and  from  captivity,  and 
bondage,  but  to  purify  us  unto  himself,  a  peculiar  people, 
zealous  of  good  works.  Our  obedience,  is  the  evidence  of 
our  having  become  partakers  in  this  redemption  ;  and  not 
at  all,  either  the  cause,  or  means  of  such  redemption.  Our 
restoration  to  the  spirit  of  obedience,  as  well  as  to  the  for- 
feited inheritance,  is  the  effect,  and  not  the  cause  of  redeem- 
ing mercy,  and  saving  love.  And  hence,  it  is  fitly  said,  that 
"it  is  not  by  works  of  righteousness,  which  we  have  done, 
but  of  his  mercy  he  saveth  us,  by  the  renewing  of  the  Spirit," 
shed  on  us  at  Christ's  intercession.  Hence  also  it  is  obvi- 
ous, boasting  is  excluded.  The  right  or  title  to  life,  is  "not 
of  works,  lest  any  man  should  boast ;  for  we  are  his  work- 
manship," and  for  our  very  obedience,  indebted  to  his  grace. 
And  after  our  best  obedience,  it  becomes  us  to  say,  we  have 
conferred  no  favour.  There  is  nothing  in  present  obedience, 
which  atones  for  the  want  of  obedience,  from  the  beginning. 
And  were  our  present  obedience  legally  perfect,  and  our  life 
as  unexceptionable  as  our  rule,  we  should  still  be  required  to 
say,  we  have  done  no  more  than  it  was  our  duty  ever  to  have 
done — Duty,  and  nothing  more,  even  though  our  forfeited 
title  to  life  should  not  be  restored.     Christ,  however,  having 


SERMON  III.  37 

expiated  our  guilt,  has  given  eternal  life,  as  well  as  "the 
power,"  or  privilege,  "to  become  the  sons  of  God,  to  as  many 
as  believe  on  his  name."  In  acknowledging  salvation  to  be 
thus  altogether  of  the  Lord,  Christians  offer  nothing  com- 
plimentary, or  superfluous  to  his  name.  For  it  is  an  essen- 
tial part  of  their  obedience,  that  they  renounce  all  dependance 
on  their  personal  righteousness,  as  a  ground  of  their  accept- 
ance. And  to  be  taken  off  from  such  dependance,  and  made 
to  rely  wholly  on  the  atonement  of  Christ,  is  the  great  work 
of  God.  Self-righteousness  is  incorporated  with  our  very 
heart's-blood,  and  is  found  often,  in  as  rank  luxuriance,  in 
the  grossly  vicious,  as  in  those  of  the  most  Pharisaical  ex- 
actness. But  they  who  are  Christ's,  have  crucified  this 
vain  conceit.  They  "count  all  things  loss,  for  the  excel- 
lence of  the  knowledge  of  Am,"  and  freely  suffer  "the  loss 
of  all  things,"  to  be  found,  having  on  the  righteousness 
which  is  of  God,  by  faith  in  him,  who  died  for  our  sins,  and 
rose  for  our  justification,  and  who  has  become  the  author  of 
eternal  salvation  to  all  them  that  obey  him. 

III.  To  perceive,  then,  the  importance  of  such  obedience 
to  happiness,  it  is  only  necessary  to  recollect,  that  without 
the  spirit  of  obedience,  there  is  no  possibility  of  restoration 
to  the  Divine  image  or  friendship,  and  no  evidence,  of  con- 
sequence, of  a  title  to  the  heavenly  inheritance.  And  with- 
out such  restoration  to  God's  image  and  favour,  how  can 
a  rational  being  be  happy  ?  Will  you  call  that  man  blessed, 
who  has  no  earnest  of  the  purchased  inheritance — who  bears 
no  resemblance  to  Christ — who  has  fallen  into  the  condem- 
nation of  the  Devil — who  is  alienated  from  the  life  of  God — 
who  is  exposed  to  die  in  his  sins,  and  to  have  a  never  end- 
ing residence  and  recompense  with  the  enemies  of  God  ! 
Call  himself  happy  he  may  ;  and  he  may  be  so  called  by 
a  world  destitute,  like  himself,  of  faith  in  the  threaten- 
ings  of  God — but  Jesus  Christ,  pronounces  him  wretched, 
miserable,  accursed ;  and  we  know,  that  his  testimony  is 


38  SERMON  III. 

true.  But  "  the  good  man  is  satisfied  from  himself."  His 
own  experience  teaches  him,  that  to  be  brought  into  the 
honorable  relation  of  a  son  of  God,  and  to  hold  in  his  hand 
a  title  to  future  glory  and  immortality  ;  and  to  possess,  in 
his  breast,  an  earnest  of  eternal  bliss,  which  sweetens  the 
intercourse  of  life,  and  removes  the  sting  of  death,  is  solid 
good.  Likeness  of  nature,  begets  likeness  of  enjoyment.  Is 
God  happy  ?  so  then  must  his  children  be.  "  If  any  love 
me"  said  Christ,  him  will  my  Father  honor,  and  where  Jam, 
there  shall  my  servant  be."  Who  wears  the  purple  of  a 
thousand  realms  ?  Who  wears  the  sceptre  of  as  many  pro- 
vinces ?  Let  him  try  to  exchange  them,  with  the  christian, 
for  the  bliss  of  one  hour's  consciousness  of  being  exalted  to 
virtuous  desires  ;  of  resembling  the  best  of  beings  ;  of  being 
allied  to  God  ;  for  the  glory  of  daring  to  be  a  follower  of 
Christ  at  the  hazard  of  bearing  the  ignominy  of  his  cross. 
God  forbid  we  should  deny,  that  in  keeping  his  command- 
ments, at  any  expense,  there  is  great  reward.  Is  there  no 
happiness  in  the  love  and  pursuit  of  what  is  lovely  ?  Is  there 
not  high  satisfaction,  in  doing  right,  from  right  principles — 
in  serving  God  with  goodwill,  on  the  ground  of  obvious 
justice,  gratitude  and  love  ?  If  not,  then  to  be  a  christian,  is 
not,  as  is  asserted  in  the  text,  to  be  blessed.  But  miserable 
is  that  man  who  awards  such  emptiness  to  christian  virtue.; 
and  wretched  he,  who  does  not  know  that  a  consciousness  of 
having  done  well — of  having  pleased  God — of  having  per- 
formed one  duty  accepted  of  his  Judge — is  of  more  real 
value,  than  all  the  glories  of  earthly  conquest,  and  the  hom- 
age of  the  world.  To  be  good,  rather  than  great,  to  be  ac- 
tuated by  the  motives  which  adorned  all  the  actions  of  the 
Son  of  God,  and  to  find  our  victory  over  sin^and  the  world, 
complete,  at  last,  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ;  is  to 
possess  "  bags  which  wax  not  old,  a  treasure  which  faileth 
not,  eternal  in  the  heavens." 


SERMON  III. 

J.  We  learn  from  our  subject,  first,  that  there  will  be 
much  "  weeping,  and  wailing,  and  gnashing  of  teeth,"  at 
the  last  day.  If  all  are  to  be  placed  on  the  left  hand,  who 
choose  Christ  only  as  a  Saviour  from  hell,  and  all  who  obey 
him  not  even  in  form,  as  well  as  all  who  obey  him  not  in 
deed  and  in  truth — how  great  must  be  the  throng,  from  the 
Mosque,  the  Monastery,  the  Synagogue,  the  Pagoda,  the 
Temples  of  Protestant  lands,  and  the  habitations  of  men  who 
have  no  Temple  but  the  world — how  great  must  be  the 
throng,  who  will  be  disappointed  at  the  bar  of  Christ !  How 
vast  the  multitude  to  whom  he  "  will  profess,  I  never  knew 
you ;  depart  from  me,  ye  workers  of  iniquity  !" 

2.  We  perceive,  in  the  next  place,  what  a  slender  hold 
they  have,  on  the  promises  of  salvation,  who  make  their 
good  works  the  basis  of  acceptance  with  a  merciful  God. 
The  obedience  of  Christ  unto  death,  is  the  sole  ground  of  a 
sinner's  title  to  the  promised  inheritance.  "  Other  founda- 
tion can  no  man  lay."  Yet  the  visible  Church,  and  the 
nominally  christian  world,  are  thronged  with  men,  who  hope 
for  the  mercy  of  God  unto  eternal  life,  only  because  they 
have  sustained  a  fair  moral  character — because,  without  at 
all  regarding  the  temper,  and  spirit,  and  motive  of  their  ac- 
tions, they  have  conformed  to  the  letter  of  the  christian  pre- 
cepts. But  such  conformity  is  not  of  the  nature  of  obedi- 
ence. This  regards,  not  only  the  form  of  the  action,  but  the 
spirit  from  which  it  proceeds  :  so  that  were  obedience,  as 
they  suppose,  the  ground  of  acceptance,  they  would  be  as 
far  from  salvation  on  that  ground,  as  they  are  on  the  princi- 
ple, that  it  is  indeed  good  evidence  of  a  title  to  eternal  life. 
In  this  view  of  the  subject,  it  is  a  peculiar  infelicity  to  be  ig- 
norant of  the  nature,  and  necessity  of  the  atonement.  Such 
ignorance  and  unbelief,  confident  and  easy  as  its  subjects 
are  in  their  security,  is  an  infallible  mark  of  an  unhumbled 
heart — of  a  soul  unreconciled  to  God.  For  all  men  of  er- 
roneous sentiments,  on  the  subject  of  the  great  salvation,  wo 


40  SERMON  III. 

have  cause  to  tremble  ;  but  for  this  class,  of  all  others,  we 
have  the  least  ground  to  hope.  They  have  neither  such 
obedience  as  the  Gospel  demands,  in  evidence  of  reconcilia- 
tion to  God,  nor,  by  their  own  testimony,  have  they  that 
faith  in  Christ,  to  which  the  promise  of  life  is  graciously 
made.  They  have  evidently  stumbled  at  the  stone  which 
God  has  laid  in  Zion  for  a  foundation,  and  on  which  (as  it 
is  written)  he  who  builds  his  hopes  and  works,  shall  never 
be  confounded.  Such  professing  christians,  the  believer 
will  pity  ;  for  them  he  will  fervently  pray ;  but  this  is  the 
all  which  they  will  allow  him  to  do.  Their  delusion  is,  to 
their  hearts,  sweeter  than  Divine  wisdom,  and  their  obsti- 
nate adherence  to  it  stronger  than  proof  of  holy  writ. 
They  have  ceased  to  listen  to  argument,  and  would  rather 
lose  their  confidence  in  the  inspiration  of  the  sacred  writers, 
than  be  convicted  of  their  error  and  corrected.  And  should 
we  at  last  witness  concerning  them,  as  of  Jerusalem,  that 
the  things  of  their  peace  are  forever  hidden  from  their  eyes, 
we  may,  indeed,  like  our  compassionate  masler,  weep  over 
their  city  when  we  behold  its  desolation ;  but  ours  will  be 
tears  neither  of  surprise  nor  of  joy 

3.  In  the  third  place,  our  subject  forcibly  reminds  us, 
of  the  iveakness,  as  well  as  wickedness  of  men,  who  either 
because  they  suppose  themselves  unable,  or  because  they  sup- 
pose obedience  unnecessary  to  make  their  salvation  sure,  neg- 
lect to  do  his  commandments.  Surely,  it  is  very  great  weak- 
ness to  suppose  that  any  man  is  to  be  saved  without  obeying 
the  Gospel  of  Christ,  when  he  has  explicitly  and  absolutely 
declared  that  such  shall  be  punished  with  everlasting  destruc- 
tion :  and  as  certainly,  it  is  very  gross  wickedness,  to 
charge  God  with  having  given  us  commandments,  which  he 
has  put  it  out  of  our  power  to  obey,  and  yet  made  obedi- 
ence the  criterion  of  our  title  to  eternal  life.  This  charge 
fastens  on  the  word  of  God  a  palpable  contradiction.  For 
he  has  expressly  declared,  that  a  willing  mind,  is  all  that  he 


SERMON  III.  41 

demands  of  those  who  have  not  the  power  to  do  any  thing 
more  in  the  way  of  obedience  ;  and  as  we  are  free,  every  man 
is  able,  at  least,  to  will  to  obey  God ;  that  is,  every  man 
possesses  the  spirit  of  obedience — the  will  to  obey,  unless  he 
deliberately  prefers  not  to  obey.  "  He  that  reproveth  God, 
let  him  answer  it." 

4.  We  learn,  from  our  subject,  the  guilt  of  men  who 
stumble  over  the  sins  of  professing  Christians.  If  God  had 
said,  that  all  who  professed  to  be  his  people,  should  prove  to 
be  his  people,  they  might  be  blameless  ;  but  in  his  word  you 
find  it  written  that  "many  are  called,  but  few  chosen." 
To  fall  over  disobedient  professors,  then,  is  your  fault — to 
give  occasion  for  it  by  disobedience  is  theirs  ;  and  every  man 
shall  bear  his  own  burden. 

5.  Finally,  brethren,  how  inexcusable,  and  how  doubly 
wretched  shall  we  be,  if  our  expectations  are  cut  off.  We 
have  every  inducement,  and  every  advantage  to  labor  obe- 
diently, that  we  may  be  accepted  of  God.  The  Apostle  and 
great  High  Priest  of  our  profession,  faithful  as  the  Sun  in 
his  course,  has  shewn  us  the  way  to  glory,  and  merited  the 
crown ;  we  have  promised  to  fight,  to  overcome,  and  wear 
it.  "  He  cannot  deny  himself."  Let  us  not  deny  him. — 
But,  adding  "to  faith,  virtue,  to  virtue  knowledge,  and  to 
knowledge  temperance,  and  to  temperance  patience,  and  to 
patience  godliness,  and  to  godliness  brotherly  kindness,  and 
to  brotherly  kindness  charity,"  let  us  abound  "  in  the  work 
of  the  Lord."  For  doing  "  these  things,  we  shall  never  fall : 
but  so  an  entrance  shall  be  ministered  unto  us  abundantly, 
into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus 
Christ."  "Now  unto  him. that  is  able  to  keep  you  from  fall- 
ing, and  to  present  youfaidtless,  before  his  presence,  with  ex- 
ceeding joy  ;  to  the  only  wise  God  our  Saviour,  be  glorrf 
throughout  all  ages. — Amen. 

6 


SERMON  IV 

EXPERIMENTAL   RELIGION    VINDICATED. 

Psalm  Ixvi.  16. 

Come  and  hear,  all  ye  that  fear  God,  and  I  will  declare  what. he 
hath  done  for  my  soul. 

Jo.OW  comes  it,  my  brethren,  that  "the  people  of  the 
saints  of  the  most  high  God,"  bury  in  their  own  breasts, 
that  Grace  which  has  distinguished  them  from  their  former 
•selves,  and  the  knowledge  of  which  should  be  diffused  to  its 
author's  praise  ?  How  comes  it,  that  the  true  christian  is  so 
diffident  of  himself,  while  the  false  convert,  noisy  aud  vain- 
glorious, proclaims  his  imagined  conversion  in  every  corner 
of  the  street,  and  in  the  chief  places  of  concourse  ! — That 
the  one,  by  an  excess  of  modesty,  withholds  from  Goo"  his 
glory,  through  fear  of  self-exaltation  ;  and  the  other  blows 
the  trumpet  of  his  own  fame,  as  if  his  self-wrought  righteous- 
ness had  made  him  the  favorite  of  heaven.  Is  not  the  prac- 
tice of  the  one  and  of  the  other,  alike  to  be  condemned,  las 
contrary  to  sound  doctrine,  and  an  extreme  equally  to  be 
avoided  ?  So  taught  the  royal  penitent,  by  an  example 
worthy  of  universal  imitation.      An  example  the  more  com- 


SERMON  IV.  4G 

manding,  as  it  is  that  of  a  man  immediately  instructed  of 
God,  in  the  duties  of  piety  ;  and  of  a  monarch,  who  had  no 
private  and  sinister  ends  to  accomplish  by  such  a  procedure. 

Observe,  and  profit  by,  his  caution  on  the  one  hand  ;  by 
his  resolute  engagedness,  on  the  other,  to  do  honor  to  his 
Saviour,  and  to  encourage  and  animate  the  fellow-heirs  of 
the  inheritance,  in  search  and  praise  of  the  treasures  of 
Divine  Grace. 

Come  and  hear — not  you,  who  neither  understand  nor 
value  the  tilings  of  God  ; — not  you,  sensual,  and  profane  ! 
who  will  only  ridicule  and  scoff  at  the  agency  of  the  Spirit 
of  God.  Come  and  hear — not  you,  victims  of  prejudice  ! — 
not  you,  libertines  !  who  would  turn  the  grace  of  God  into 
wantonness,  and  deride  the  most  sacred  and  the  most  thor- 
oughly attested  truths  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  Who  then 
are  invited,  to  listen  to  the  methods  of  his  operations,  who 
has  an  invincible  and  saving  influence  upon  the  human 
heart?  "Come  and  hear,  all  ye  that  fear  God" — who  can 
appreciate  his  mercy,  and  confide  in  the  testimony  of  his 
adopted  sons.  Others  also  must  have  evidence  of  your  con- 
cern for  his  honor  and  for  their  welfare  ;  but  this  must  arise 
from  your  tears  and  prayers — your  instructions  and  re- 
proofs :  it  must  be  given  in  your  zeal  to  reform  them,  and 
in  a  thousand  signs  of  your  solicitude  for  their  salvation. 
The  world  must  have  evidence,  that  God  is  in  you  of  a  truth, 
and  that  you  prize  his  influence  ;  but  this  is  to  be  given  them, 
in  what  alone  has  weight  with  the  incredulous,  the  power  of 
a  holy  example.  In  your  detachment  from  the  objects  which 
engross  them — in  your  heavenly-mindedness — in  your  su- 
periority to  the  pleasures  which  captivate,  the  employments 
which  engage,  and  the  sorrows  that  depress  and  overwhelm 
an  earthly  mind.  Your  light  will  shine  convincingly  before 
them,  to  the  glory  of  the  Father,  only  by  this  peculiar  de- 
portment.    These  are  the  means  by  which  alone  you  can 


44  SERMON  IV. 

hope  to  benefit  them,  and  this  is  the  testimony  you  owe    t© 
the  grace  of  God  in  their  behalf. 

But  another  object  is  now  before  us — It  is  to  Vindicate 
the  character  of  Experimental  Relic. ion  ;  and  to  exhibit 
the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  communion  with  each 
other,  on  this  most  interesting  subject. 

The  phrase,  experimental  religion,  has  been  introduced 
into  the  Christian  world,  not  from  choice,  but  necessity. 
Not  because  it  is  to  be  admitted,  for  a  moment,  that  any 
man  possesses,  or  can  possess  a  religious  character,  without 
experience  ;  but  because  the  world  have  been  ever  contend- 
ing for  a  religion  in  which  the  heart  may  be  excused  a  share, 
or  as  little  as  possible,  be  obliged  to  participate. 

Far  is  it,  however,  from  the  fact,  as  men  who  deny 
Christian  experience,  would  persuade  themselves,  that  it  is 
either  opposed  to  light  in  the  understanding,  or  in  any  case 
exists  without  it.  Equally  remote  from  the  truth,  is  the 
supposition,  that  experimental  religion  is  a  work  of  the 
imagination,  without,  any  salutary  influence  in  the  regula- 
tion of  the  passions  and  the  conduct.  It  is,  on  the  contrary, 
an  affection  of  the  heart,  productive  of  the  soundest  judg- 
ment. It  is  alike  remote  from  a  mere  speculative  knowledge, 
and  an  enthusiastic  heat  of  the  passions — from  a  mere 
theory  of  sentiment,  and  a  mechanical  and  unfeeling  govern- 
ment of  the  visible  deportment.  The  christian  is  declared, 
by  the  author  of  the  faith,  to  have  "  the  eyes  of  his  under- 
standing enlightened,"  and  his  heart  deeply  affected  :  his 
whole  conduct,  of  consequence,  is  governed  by  such  an  un- 
derstanding, and  such  a  heart.  The  speculative  christian, 
assents  to  the  truths  of  revealed  religion  ;  the  experimental 
christian  goes  a  step  farther,  and  tastes  and  sees  that  these 
truths  and  their  author  are  good.  The  mechanical  christian, 
frames  his  doings  by  statutes,  written  with  ink,  engraven  on 
stone,    and   perceived  only  by  the  eye  j  the   experimental 


SERMON  IV.  45 

christian  has  them  written,  by  the  Spirit  of  the  living  God, 
on  the  fleshly  tables  of  the  heart.  Every  truth  of  the  gos- 
pel, of  consequence,  becomes,  in  the  highest  sense,  knowledge. 
He  knows  that  God  is  worthy  of  supreme  love,  because,  in 
addition  to  the  conclusion  of  his  understanding,  he  has  the 
verdict  of  his  heart.  He  knows  himself  to  be  a  sinner,  not 
merely  because  he  perceives  the  difference  between  the  pre- 
cepts of  the  law,  and  his  conduct ;  but  because  he  Jeels  his 
vileness.  He  knows  the  necessity,  the  value,  and  the  suf- 
ficiency of  the  Redeemer,  not  merely  because  this  statement 
meets  his  eye,  in  a  revelation  which  is  proved  to  be  from 
God  ;  but  also,  because  he  has  felt  most  keenly  the  need  of 
such  a  Saviour,  and  has  embraced  him  in  his  affections. 
Thus  the  very  image  of  the  objects,  presented  him  in  the 
word  of  God,  is  formed  upon  his  heart,  and  becomes  anala- 
gous  to  that  of  natural  objects  formed  on  the  retina  of  the 
eye.  Let  the  rationalist  now,  compare  the  notions  a  blind 
man  obtains  of  the  objects  of  vision,  by  description,  with 
those  of  the  man,  who  from  actual  inspection  describes  them : 
or  rather,  let  him  imagine  the  blind  man  restored  to  sight, 
and  he  will  perceive  the  propriety  of  the  affirmation,  that 
religion  without  experience  can  be  no  more  said  to  exist  in 
the  human  breast,  than  a  landscape  to  possess  beauties  in 
the  view  of  him  who  is  without  the  organs  of  vision. — Con- 
ceive what  such  a  man,  on  being  restored  to  sight,  would 
tell  you  of  what  had  been  done  for  his  eyes,  and  judge, 
from  this  feeble  illustration,  what  a  christian  must  be  able 
to  say,  God  has  done  for  his  soul. 

Permit  me  to  ask  then  whether  there  be  any  thing  irra- 
tional, or  unfriendly  to  the  human  intellect,  in  maintaining 
the  necessity  of  an  experimental  acquaintance  with  divine 
truth  ?  Is  it  possible  for  Omnipotence  to  open  the  blind  eye, 
and  fill  the  soul  with  delight  in  perceiving  the  beautiful  ob- 
jects with  which  it  is  surrounded — and  is  it  not  possible  so  to 


4G  SERMON  IV. 

enlighten  the  understanding,  and  move  the  heart,  as  to  give 
reality  and  excellence  to  the  religion  of  the  gospel  !  May 
he  not  thus  impart  knowledge  and  pleasure,  through  the 
medium  of  the  understanding  and  affections,  with  as  much 
facility,  as  through  the  medium  of  corporeal  vision  !  The 
Jew  may  doubt,  and  the  malignant  blaspheme,  but  he  who 
has  experienced  such  an  operation  will  tell  you,  in  either 
case,  "  whereas  1  was  blind  I  now  see  :" — and  to  doubt  his 
testimony,  or  charge  him  with  delusion,  is  a  proof,  not  of 
superior  wisdom  or  penetration,  but  of  deplorable  ignorance. 
The  man  has  made  trial,  and  by  experiment  proved  the 
truth  of  the  description  which  has  been  given  him,  and  you 
call  him  a  visionary  and  enthusiast.  You  have  declined  the 
experiment,  and  yet  put  in  an  exclusive  claim  to  reason. 
Your  claim  shall  be  respected,  when  you  trust  your  ship 
with  the  landsman  who  never  tried  his  skill  upon  the  ocean — 
when  you  commit  your  case  to  the  novice,  who  never  advo- 
cated a  cause — when  you  lease  out  your  farm  to  a  man  who 
has  spent  his  life  in  studying  the  books  of  husbandry,  without 
once  engaging  in  the  labors  of  the  field.  Till  then,  all  can- 
did men  will  agree,  that  he  is  the  visionary  who  denies' the 
necessity,  or  laughs  at  the  testimony  of  experience.  And 
if,  even  in  the  little  concerns  of  a  world  which  is  passing 
away — jf5  for  objects  of  comparatively  trivial  and  insignifi- 
cant character,  experience  alone  obtains  respect  : — if,  even 
in  Philosophy,  whom  the  rationalist  hails  as  the  daughter  of 
the  skies,  that  alone  which  is  experimental  obtains  the  re- 
gard of  wise  men  : — if  only  that  administration  obtains  con- 
fidence, which  employs  experienced  statesmen  in  the  cabinet, 
and  experienced  generals  in  the  field  : — if,  in  the  most  com- 
mon concerns  of  business,  experience  is  atf  essential  qualifi- 
cation of  the  men  we  employ — how  preposterous,  how  op- 
posed to  common  sense,  the  assertion,  that  it  is  of  little  ac- 
count, or  even  worse  than  useless,  in  the  greatest  of  all  con- 


SERMON  IV.  47 

cerns — the  Christian  Religion  !  Inexperience  in  commercial 
concerns,  has  ruined  its  thousands.  Inexperience  in  the 
affairs  of  the  state,  has  destroyed  empires  ;  and  inexperience 
in  religion,  will  delude  to  perdition  a  world  of  souls.  Yes, 
a  world  of  souls  !  for  once  in  thirty  years,  more  than  six 
hundred  millions  of  human  beings  die — and  of  these,  not  a 
sixth  part  have  even  the  theory  of  true  religion  :  and  of  this 
sixth,  how  great  a  proportion  deride  as  visionary — and  how 
much  greater,  professedly  knoio  nothing  of  experimental 
piety  ! 

To   vindicate  it   therefore,  is  to  take   the   part  of  Jesus 
Christ  against  the  powers  of  darkness. 

Much  is  said,  by  the  sober  part  of  mankind,  in  behalf  of 
practical  religion  ;  and  too  much  in  its  favor  never  can  be 
said  :  but  let  it  not  be  forgotten  that  practical  religion,  de- 
pends entirely  upon  that  which  is  experimental.  We  can- 
not take  a  step  in  our  practice,  acceptable  to  God,  if  our 
ultimate  end  be  wrong — and  how  can  our  motives  be  right, 
without  any  experience  of  the  love  of  truth  !  All  experience 
worthy  of  the  name  may  be  comprehended  in  the  love  of 
God,  shed  abroad  in  the  heart.  Without  this,  a  very  differ- 
ent kind  of  experience  has  always  shown  us,  that  we  are  the 
mere  sport  of  passion.  Pride,  ambition  and  selfishness,  in 
some  of  their  multiform  shapes,  give  an  impulse  to  every 
movement  of  the  soul,  and,  whatever  be  the  form  of  our  ac- 
tions, necessarily  render  both  us  and  them,  an  abhorrence  in 
the  eyes  of  him,  who  looketh,  not  on  the  outward  appearance, 
but  the  heart.  Hence  it  is,  that  the  form  of  religion  may 
exist,  and  does  exisi  often,  in  men  who  deny  its  power,  leav- 
ing them  the  servants  of  corruption.  Hence  too,  those  in- 
numerable errors  which  have  filled  the  visible  church  with 
contention  and  discord,  and  carried  about  with  every  wind 
of  doctrine,  men  who  have  failed  to  secure  that  good  thing — 
a  heart  established  with  grace — by  founding  their  practice 


48  SERMON  IV. 

upon  experience.  That  love,  which  prompts  a  man  to  do  the 
will  of  God,  the  knowledge  of  which,  is  to  be  acquired  only 
by  experience,  is  alone  an  infallible  security  against  fatal 
error.  It  is  only  by  the  knowledge  of  our  weakness,  our 
corruption,  our  dependance,  and  our  obligations,  that  we 
learn  to  walk  humbly  with  God.  But  this  is  a  knowledge, 
which  books  will  never  teach  us,  and  be  our  practice  what 
it  may,  without  such  knowledge  we  can  have  no  communion 
with  God. 

The  most  bigotted  men  the  world  has  ever  beheld,  belong 
to  that  class,  who  oppose  practical,  to  experimental  re- 
ligion— who  go  through  all  the  forms  of  justice,  beneficence, 
public  and  secret  worship,  with  the  organs  of  the  body, 
while  their  hearts  are  destitute  of  the  spirit  of  Christ.  And 
if  any  men  could  have  right  to  be  bigotted,  they,  of  all  men 
would  be  best  entitled  to  it :  for  who  would  not  be  tenacious 
of  his  forms,  and  wedded  to  his  practice  as  the  one  thing 
needful,  when  it  constitutes  the  whole  of  his  religion  !  But 
of  what  value  is  it  ?  Nothing  which  we  do  without  respect 
for  God,  though  the  form,  or  matter  of  the  action,  be  per- 
fectly unexceptionable,  has  any  thing  of  the  nature  of  re- 
ligion. It  has  of  course  an  essential  defect  of  a  rational,  no 
less  than  of  a  religious,  act :  and  to  be  attached  to  such  a 
service,  and  to  lay  such  a  stress  on  it,  is  of  the  very  nature 
of  bigotry,  which  like  persecution  and  blind  zeal,  is  opposed 
to  the  genius  and  spirit  of  Christianity. 

Hence  it  is,  that  the  life  of  a  christian  is  said  to  be  "  hid 
with  Christ."  It  is  a  life,  in  its  essential  peculiarities,  hid- 
den, not  only  as  its  nature  is  spiritual  and  of  course  invisible, 
but  as  it  is  wholly  unknown  to  the  world,  who,  having  no 
experience  of  the  hopes,  and  joys,  and  sorrows,  and  motives, 
and  feelings,  of  a  christian,  cannot  be  supposed  to  appreciate 
them ;  and  this  is  one  of  the  soundest'  reasons  for  calling 
upon  them  who/e«r  God,  in  distinction  from  the  wicked,  to 


SERMON  IV.  49 

listen  to  those  testimonies  of  divine  Grace,  which  the  true 
christian  is  ready  to  impart,  not  as  his  boast,  but  for  the 
honor  of  the  divine  mercy. 

Finally,  that  there  can  be  no  such  thing  as  practical  re* 
ligion  without  experimental,  is  obvious  from  the  fact,  that 
the  gospel  on  all  its  pages,  declares  that  every  motive  and 
every  grace  of  the  christian,  from  which  acceptable  conduct 
proceeds,  is  the  fruit  of  divine  mercy,  and  the  gift  of  God. 
Sutler  me  now  to  ask,  this  being  true,  whether,  in  the  nature 
of  things,  it  be  possible  that  God  should  impart  to  the  soul 
of  man  these  graces,  and  he  not  know  it,  or,  in  other  words, 
not  experience  it.  Are  our  hearts  made  of  such  insensible 
stuff,  that  they  may  be  changed  from  the  love  of  the  world 
to  the  love  of  God,  without  any  consciousness  of  such  a 
change  ?  Can  a  man  awake  from  a  state  of  apathy — can  he 
change  the  objects  of  his  chief  affection  and  pursuit — his 
studies — his  companions — and  his  fondest  expectations — can 
any  operation  indeed,  of  so  interesting,  and  affecting  a  na- 
ture, be  performed,  as  shall  give  his  whole  practice  a  new 
character — and  he  himself,  be  said  to  have  had  no  experi- 
mental acquaintance  with  such  an  operation  !  If  this  is  too 
absurd  to  be  alleged,  then  it  must  either  be  denied  that  any 
such  operation  is  necessary,  and  so  the  whole  gospel  be  re- 
jected ;  or  it  must  be  admitted,  that  experimental  religion  is 
an  essential  preparative  for  that  which  is  practical,  and  that 
they  cannot  in  any  case  have  a  separate  and  independent 
existence.  Let  us  put  away  then  that  incredulity,  and  above 
all,  that  derisive  smile,  implying  a  fiend-like  malice,  which 
is  sometimes  excited  at  the  mention  of  experimental  religion. 
Without  experience,  religion  is  but  a  chimera  ;  and  without 
a  substantial  and  cordial  religion,  man  is  lost  forever  !  We 
have  endeavoured  to  vindicate  the  character  of  experimental 
religion — 

II.  Let  us  look,  in  the  next  place,  at  the  benefits  which 
7 


50  SERMON  IV. 

its  subjects  may  derive,  from  communicating  to  each  other, 
the  methods  and  the  influence  of  divine  grace  upon  their 
hearts.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  recommend  that  ostentatious 
and  self-righteous  boast  of  one's  own  favors  ;  or  even  that 
humble,  but  ill  timed  disclosure  of  our  personal  experiences, 
which  characterize  but  too  many  of  every  christian  country. 
He  who  said,  on  one  occasion,  "  go  home  and  show  thy 
friends  how  great  things  the  Lord  hath  done  for  thee  ;"  &aid, 
on  another,  "  see  thou  tell  no  man."  But  there  are  times, 
when  it  would  be  ungrateful  to  keep  silence  ;  there  are  oc- 
casions, when  reserve  would  be  something  more  than  mod- 
esty. While  the  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God,  and  the 
lower  world,  in  all  its  animate  and  inanimate  portions,  unite 
with  one  voice,  to  celebrate  his  goodness  ;  it  would  be  an 
outrage,  for  him  who  is  endowed  with  the  gift  of  speech, 
and  whose  lips  the  Lord  has  opened — for  whom  he  has  done 
more  than  for  the  whole  creation  beside,  never  to  show  forth 
his  praise,  by  declaring  what  has  been  done  for  him. 

The  confession  in  the  text,  is,  like  that  of  all  men  taught 
of  God,  a  direct  acknowledgment,  that  the  soul  derives  all 
its  virtue,  hope,  and  happiness  from  the  grace  of  God.  In- 
stead, therefore,  of  swelling  the  heart  of  man  with  pride; 
nothing  has  a  more  direct  tendency  to  clothe  it  with  humil- 
ity. Gratitude  to  God,  then,  demands  of  us  at  times,  a  per- 
sonal testimony  to  his  rich  and  sovereign  goodness.  Hence, 
the  chiefest  of  the  Apostles,  has  given  us  an  example  of  such 
humility  and  gratitude. — "  By  the  grace  of  God  I  am  what 
I  am  ;"  and  though  unknown,  by  face,  to  the  churches  of 
Judea,  they,  on  hearing  of  his  conversion  to  the  faith  he 
once  laboured  to  destroy,  glorified  God  in  him.  The  peo- 
ple, beholding  the  man  whose  sins  Jesus  had  forgiven,  were 
amazed,  and  glorified  God.  When  Cornelius,  .having  called 
his  friends  about  him,  related  to  them  and  to  the  Apostle, 
the  story  of  God's  distinguishing  mercy  to  his  soul,  they 


SERMON  IV.  51 

were  all  filled  with  gratitude  and  praise;  while  the  Apostle, 
in  the  audience  of  them  all,  proclaimed  the  largeness  and 
impartiality  of  the  divine  goodness  to  Gentiles  and  to 
Jews. 

Who  is  not  filled  with  admiration  of  the  divine  bounty, 
when  he  sees  Jehovah  opening  his  hand,  and  supplying  the 
wants  of  every  living  thing  : — when  he  beholds  him  as  the 
great  Father  of  all,  vindicating  the  cause  of  the  oppressed, 
and  pleading  for  the  fatherless  and  widow  : — when,  by  his 
mysterious  providence,  he  delivers  the  innocent,  and  defeats 
the  designs  of  malice  ;  and  through  the  very  means  they  em- 
ploy to  devastate,  promotes  the  increase,  stability,  and  hap- 
piness of  the  earth  !  But  all  this — worthy  of* a  God  as  it 
is — all  this,  is  nothing,  compared  with  the  triumphs  of  his 
grace,  overcoming  even  his  enemies,  subduing  malignity  by 
love,  reforming  the  headstrong,  pardoning  the  guilty,  and 
out  of  corruption  itself,  creating  a  spirit  in  his  own  likeness, 
and  qualifying  it  to  bless  mankind,  to  enjoy  the  pleasures  of 
his  kingdom,  and  to  glorify  his  name  forever.  Who  can 
witness,  much  more  feel,  such  effects  of  the  stupendous 
work  of  redeeming  and  sanctifying  love,  without  a  heart  to 
praise,  or  a  tongue  to  utter  the  memory  of  so  great  good- 
ness ? 

What  think  you  of  the  man,  who,  though  rescued  from 
poverty,  despair,  and  death,  by  the  disinterested  efforts  of  a 
generous  stranger,  never  makes  an  acknowledgment,  save 
when  he  can  steal  into  his  solitude — never  speaks  to  others 
of  the  kindness  he  has  received,  nor  suffers  his  friends  to 
know  to  whom  he  is  indebted  for  his  competence  !  Is  he  an 
ingrate  ?  How  much  more  the  man  who  confines  to  his  own 
bosom,  his  obligations  to  his  maker  ! — Whom,  when  a 
stranger  to  God  and  to  himself,  grace  made  so  great  a  debt- 
or, by  discovering  to  him  the  plague  of  his  heart,  and  by 
leading  him,  for  refuge  from  justice  and  from  guilt,  to  the 


§2  SERMON  IV. 

cross  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  the  hope  set  before  him  in  the 
Gospel — conquered  his  attachment  to  idols,  rescued  him  from 
the  prison  of  despair,  and  secured  to  him  the  freedom  of  the 
city  of  God  !  Ought  not  such  a  man,  to  overcome  his  irreso- 
lution, or  timidity,  and  to  do  honor  to  his  deliverer  ? 
Ought  he  not  to  give  to  him  "  who  asketh  him,  a  reason  of 
the  hope  that  is  in  him,  with  meekness  and  fear  ?"  Thus  in- 
deed man  is  abased,  but  his  Saviour  is  exalted.  Not  only 
gratitude  to  God,  but — 

2.     In  the  next    place,   the  edification  of  the  church,  re- 
quires it.     The  great  "  diversity  of  operation,"  which  is  ex- 
pressly ascribed  to  the   "  same  spirit,"  and  which  produces 
the  same  results  in  every  breast  in  which  it  dwells,  can    be 
known,  only  by  such    communication.     But  as    in   all   this 
variety,  the  wisdom  of  God  is  illustrated,  and  our  views  of 
his  goodness  extended,  and  even  our  charity  enlarged,   it-is 
of  no  small  importance,  that   christians  speak  freely,  at  some 
time,  one  to  another.     Nor  is  it  merely  edifying,  it  is   ani- 
mating also.     Did  you  never  witness  the  interest  excited   in 
the  youthful  soldier's   breast,  when  the  faithful  veteran  has 
given  the  narrative  of  his  early  conflicts,  and,  forgetting  his 
wounds,  started  from    his   seat,  "  shouldered  his  crutch,  and 
shown  how  fields  were  won  ?"  So  the  young  convert  kindles, 
and  his   hope   lights  up,  when,  in  his  experience,  the  aged 
christian  spreads  before  him  all   the  way  in  which  God  has 
led  him,  from   the  commencement  of  his  pilgrimage.     He 
gains   something,   even   from   the  story   of  his  doubts,'  and 
fears,  and   falls.     Good  men  love  to  hear  of  the  operations 
of  divine   grace.     And   it   is    not   an    idle   curiosity  which 
wakes  their  attention  ;  nor  is  it  gratified  without  a  good  prac- 
tical influence,    when    the    reports  of  these   operations    are 
judiciously,   and  seasonably   interchanged.      When  tidings 
came    to  the    church  of  Jerusalem,   of  the   power  of  God 
through  the  preaching  of  the  Apostles  at  Antioch,  Barnabas 


SERMON  IV.  53 

was  dispatched  to  learn  its  operation  and  extent ;  who,  When 
he  had  arrived,  and  witnessed*  the  grace  of  God,  was  glad. 
It  inspires  love  to  the  generous  benefactor,  to  hear  the  tale 
of  the  miserable  whom  he  has  relieved  ;  and  excites  confi- 
dence too,  in  him  who  needs  similar  relief,  to  go  to  him  with 
increased  hope  of  obtaining  like  benefits.  The  history  of 
the  christian  soldier,  gives  fortitude  to  the  mind  meeting  the 
same  temptations  and  conflicts.  The  example  of  those  who 
have  embarked,  with  all  their  stores,  in  the  cause  of  right- 
eousness, and  who  have  been  enabled  to  adorn  the  doctrine 
of  the  Saviour,  and  to  bless  mankind,  animates  the  soul  to 
virtue  ;  and  when  we  learn  the  means,  by  which  God  has 
wrought  such  excellence  in  men,  new  thoughts  are  conceiv- 
ed, new  confirmation  of  faith,  and  hope,  and  patience,  are 
added  :  we  melt  with  sympathy,  we  grow  emulous,  and  our 
hearts  ascend  to  God  in  praise.  Thus  the  wonderful  works 
of  God,  and  the  verity  of  his  word,  and  the  truth  of  his 
promises,  and  the  whole  mystery  of  redeeming  and  saving 
love,  in  its  application  to  man,  is  developed  ;  and  we  are 
consoled  as  ^ell  as  animated,  and  purified  as  well  as  trans- 
ported, at  what  God  has  done  for  the  soul.  Yes  christians  ! 
these  narratives  have  moistened,  with  tears  of  gladness,  the 
furrowed  cheek  ;  and  proved  the  means,  of  spiritual  good  to 
many  souls.  And  thus  to  warm,  and  elevate — to  ennoble, 
and  invigorate  each  others'  hearts,  is  not  merely  to  give  a 
theatrical  representation  of  human  happiness,  and  human 
woes :  it  is  not  to  beget  the  lean  pleasures  of  the  player's 
hero,  but  to  depict  the  realities  of  life,  and  yield  the  soul  a 
permanent  benefit  in  its  pilgrimage  to  heaven.  For  one 
truth,  built  upon  actual  experience,  or  derived  from  it,  has 
a  force  and  virtue,  worth  ten  thousand  merely  speculative. 
Man  may,  indeed,  very  rationally  take  for  true,  the  testimony 
of  Christ,  on  the  external  evidence  alone  ;  but  no  confirma- 
tion is  to  be  compared  with  that,  produced  by  the  corres- 


54  SERMON  IV. 

pondence  of  our  own  hearts'  testimony,  with  his  declarations. 
The  similar  experience  of  another,  increases  the  force  of 
evidence;  and  thus  the  heirs  of  life  are  mutual  fellow-help- 
ers to  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  are  made  to  hold  fast  their 
confidence  unto  the  end.  Thus  charity,  while  she  seeketh 
not  her  own,  is  kind  ;  and  while  never  puffed  up,  edifieth  her 
neighbor. 

3.  Finally,  at  some  time  to  follow  the  example  in  the 
text,  is  requisite  to  command  the  charity  of  the  Church  for 
ourselves.  Charity  cannot  believe  without  evidence  ;  nor 
consider  that  man  a  Christian,  whose  claim  has  no  other 
support,  than  that  he  sits  at  the  table  of  the  Lord,  and  is 
neither  a  glutton  nor  a  drunkard.  The  evidence  she  asks, 
is  to  be  obtained,  only  by  a  comparison  of  our  professions 
with  our  actions.  If  God  has  done  nothing  for  our  souls, 
no  kind  of  life  can  afford  evidence  that  we  are  Christians  : 
for  religion  has  its  commencement,  its  progress,  and  its  in- 
fluence in  the  soul.  If  a  spirit  of  holiness  be  in-wrought  in 
our  breasts,  and  the  high  and  lofty  One  has  taken  up  his 
dwelling  there,  we  shall  give  no  false  representations,  and 
our  life  will  not  belie  the  tale  we  tell.  Without  the  evidence 
of  such  a  profession,  and  a  corresponding  life,  how  are  we 
to  enjoy  that  personal  friendship — that  holy  fellowship, 
which,  next  to  communion  with  God,  is  essen  ial  to  consti- 
tute a  Church  of  Christ  ?  That  most  important  of  all  rela- 
tive duties — the  exercise  of  love  to  the  brethren — inculcated 
so  frequently  by  the  Saviour,  and  insisted  on  so  much  in 
the  Gospel,  as  the  essential  evidence  of  our  discipleship,  can- 
not be  performed  towards  men  of  whose  Christian  character 
we  have  no  evidence,  from  any  quarter  :  And  from  no  quar- 
ter can  it  come,  if  it  be  never  even  declared,  that  God  has 
done  any  thing  for  our  souls.  Such  a  declaration,  to  con- 
fidential friends  at  least,  fails  not  to  lay  a  foundation  for 
Christian  communion,  if  the  life  be  right ;  and  to  engage 


SERMON  IV.  55 

the  affection  or  charity  of  all,  who,  through  those  friends, 
receive  the  evidence  of  our  discipleship.  By  such  an  inter- 
change of  views,  and  such  a  disclosure  of  divine  operations 
upon  their  hearts,  the  Christian  fraternity  are  attracted  to 
each  other ;  and  kindly  affectioned,  and  charitably  united, 
constitute  part  of  that  blessed  family,  who,  having  one  Lord, 
one  faith,  one  hope,  are  distinguished  from  every  other  com»- 
munity ;  loving  one  another,  out  of  a  pure  heart  fervently, 
subordinate,  in  all  things,  to  Jesus  Christ. 

If  then,  as  we  have  endeavored  to  evince,  experimental  re- 
ligion be  essential  to  a  Christian  life,  a  happy  death,  and  a 
glorious  immortality — if  gratitude  to  God,  the  highest  use- 
fulness to  the  Church,  and  charity  to  ourselves,  demand  of 
us,  a  seasonable  and  judicious  report,  of  the  methods  of 
divine  grace  with  our  souls — the  proper  Improvement  of 
this  subject,  demands  of  Christians,  an  inquiry  at  the  door 
of  their  own  hearts,  whether  they  have  not  received  the 
grace  of  God  in  vain  ! 

Are  there  not  some  without  the  Church,  who  have  smoth- 
ered in  their  own  breast,  that  goodness  of  God,  which,  for 
the  honor  of  his  name,  should  have  been  inscribed  on  his 
altar  ?  Are  there  not  others,  who  have  grown  old  in  wait- 
ing at  the  posts  of  his  house,  without  a  single  deliberate, 
and  honest  investigation,  of  the  causes  which  have  led  them 
to  profess  the  religion  of  Christ,  and  to  eat  and  drink  with 
his  friends  at  the  sacramental  table  ?  Are  there  not  still 
more,  who,  though  able  to  give  a  reason  of  the  hope  that  is 
in  them,  decline,  from  motives  which  will  never  bear  the 
light,  that  free,  but  unostentatious  communication  with 
their  fellow  christians,  on  the  subject  of  their  personal  re- 
ligion, which  is  authorized  by  the  best  examples  in  the  word 
of  God  ;  and  which  is  withheld  at  the  sacrifice  of  their  own 
usefulness,  the  interests  of  the  church,  and  the  glory  of  their 
supreme  benefactor  ? 


56  SERMON  IV. 

While  we  are  all  induced,  by  a  consideration  of  this  too 
much  neglected  topic,  to  make  a  thorough  personal  exami- 
nation of  our  interest  in  it ;  let  us  remember,  that  Christ  has 
most  significantly  said,  that  "no  man  lighteth  a  candle  to 
put  it  under  a  corn  measure" — and  that  if  God  has  done  any 
thing  for  our  souls,  worthy  of  our  gratitude  and  his  grace, 
he  has  done  it — not  for  our  pleasure  merely,  but  for  the 
glory  of  his  own  name. 


SERMON  V. 


EVERY    MAN'S    BUSINESS. 

1st  Thessalonians,  iv,  11. 

But  toe  heseech  you,  brethren,  that  ye  increase  more  and  moreP 
and  that  ye  study  to  be  quiet,  and  to  do  your  own  business , 
and  to  icork  with  your  own  hands,  as  toe  commanded  you. 

JL  HE  profession  of  Christianity,  is  a  profession  of  love  to 
God  and  man ;  but  Christianity  itself,  is  the  influence  of 
such  love  in  the  heart,  producing  the  fruits  of  righteousness. 
And  this  fact  serves  to  explain  the  commendation  in  the  con- 
text— "  As  touching  brotherly  love,  ye  have  no  need  that  I 
write  unto  you  ;  for  ye  yourselves  are  taught  of  God  to  love 
one  another  ;  and  indeed  ye  do  it  towards  all  the  brethren 
which  are  in  Macedonia  ;  but  we  beseech  you,  brethren, 
that  ye  increase  in  these  fruits  of  love  more  and  more" — that 
ye  excel  in  this  grace,  being  manifestly  under  its  influence  in 
all  the  actions  of  life,  little  as  well  as  great,  common  as  well 
as  peculiar ;  never  allowing  yourselves  to  be  governed  by 
selfish  and  base  motives,  nor  confining  your  love  within  nar- 
row limits  ;  but  extending  it  wider  and  farther — acquiring 
such  a  habit  of  doing  every  thing  from  the  influence  of  this 
grace — that  it  shall  be  evident  that  all  you  say,  and  all  you 
8 


oS  SERMON  V. 

do,  and  all  you  refrain  from  doing  and  saying,  is  the  effect 
of  that  kindness,  forgiveness,  forbearance,  and  compassion, 
which  shone  so  conspicuously  in  all  the  conduct  of  your  di- 
vine Master.  Among  the  fruits  of  this  love,  is  an  ambition 
to  be  useful,  and  not  a  burden  to  the  church  ;  and  a  fervent 
desire  to  perform  all  our  duties,  to  our  families,  to  our 
neighbours,  and  to  the  community ;  and  by  all  the  habits 
of  a  quiet,  peaceable,  industrious  and  godly  life,  to  adorn 
the  Christian  professioHc  There  is  no  other  way  to  live 
honestly  and  contentedly — to  avoid  the  evils  of  poverty,  and 
a  taxing  of  others  for  our  support ;  and  to  lay  up  something 
for  distribution  among  the  unfortunate,  the  needy,  the  sick ; 
and  for  extending  the  gospel  to  the  destitute.  No  volunta- 
rily idle  man  is  an  honest  man  ;  and  no  dishonest  man  has 
any  thing  ofChristian  charity.  He  defrauds  the  community 
of  services  to  which  they  are  entitled  from  him  ;  and  takes 
the  surest  means  to  bring  himself  into  a  state  of  dependance 
on  others.  The  duty  of  diligence  in  business,  therefore,  is, 
with  christians,  a  fruit  of  love ;  and  it  is  enjoined,  that  ye 
may  walk  honestly  toward  them  that  are  without,  and  that 
ye  may  have  lack  of  nothing.  To  enforce  this  duty,  is  the 
single  object  of  the  present  discourse. 

1.  And  in  the  first  place,  in  order  to  observe  this  injunc- 
tion, and  keep  the  precept  as  it  has  been  delivered  to  us,  it 
is  necessary  that  every  man  in  the  community  should  have 
business  of  his  own.  Man  is  an  active,  and  an  imitative  an- 
imal ;  and  if  love  do  not  employ  him,  the  opposite  passion 
will.  He  will  serve  some  master  ;  and  it  will  be  Gon  or 
Sin.  He  will  imitate  some  one  ;  and  it  will  be  the  useful,  or 
the  mischievous  man.  These  are  truths  so  obvious  from 
our  own  observation,  as  to  require  no  illustration.  If  man 
has  no  calling  of  his  own,  nor  regular,  stated  Occupation,  it 
is  impossible  he  should  be  "  quiet."  The  activity  of  the  hu- 
njan  mind  is  such,  that  without  employment,  it  is  sure  to 


SERMON  V.  09 

prey  upon  itself — to  become  restless,  discontented,  and  un- 
easy ;  and  never  fails  to  become,  by  a  chosen  necessity,  a 
busy  body  in  other  men's  matters.  Experience  has  always 
taught,  that  employment  is  absolutely  necessary  to  one's 
own  enjoyment,  as  well  as  to  his  usefulness  to  others ;  and 
the  wisdom  and  goodness  of  God  are  alike  conspicuous,  in 
so  constituting  man,  that  an  idle,  shall  always  be  a  wretched 
life  :  and  mankind  have  very  generally  agreed,  at  least  in 
theory,  to  denounce  such  a  life,  as  mischievous  to  society. 
The  Apostle,  therefore,  with  very  manifest  propriety,  has 
severely  reproved  all  of  both  sexes,  however  easy  their  cir- 
cumstances, who  indulge  themselves  in  sloth.  Nay,  he  has 
gone  so  far  as  to  say,  that  such  persons  are  unworthy  of  our 
countenance  and  our  alms.  "If  any  will  not  work,  neither 
shall  they  eat."  The  law  given  to  Adam,  is  binding  upon 
all  men,  in  the  spirit,  though  not  in  the  letter — "  In  the  sweat 
of  thy  brow,  thou  shalt  eat  thy  bread."  In  disobedience  to 
this  law,  on  the  most  generous  construction,  man  becomes  a 
nuisance  to  society.  A  great  proportion  of  the  convicts  in 
our  public  places  of  confinement,  are  found  to  be  from  that 
class  of  men,  who  have  ceased  to  be  diligent  in  their  lawful 
calling  ;  or,  who  never  had  any.  The  door  of  the  heart  be- 
ing once  opened  by  indolence,  the  most  urgent  .temptations 
to  dishonesty  and  crime,  enter  in  :  and  if  all  indolent  men 
do  not  reach  these  places  of  confinement,  it  is  not  because 
they  are  without  crime,  but  because  their  crimes  are  of  such 
a  nature  that  the  secular  law  has  no  cognizance  of  them  ;  or 
because  the  ingenuity  of  man  contrives  to  evade  the  law. 
The  Apostle  very  clearly  intimates,  that  wherever  there  is 
wanting  in  men,  a  disposition  to  diligence  in  business,  mis- 
chief follows.  For  no  sooner  had  he  said  to  the  church  in 
Thessalonica,  "  we  commanded,  when  we  were  with  you, 
that  if  any  would  not  work,  neither  should  he  eat" — than  he 
adds;  "for  we  hear  that  there   are  some  amone:  you  which 


60  SERMON  V. 

walk  disorderly,  not  working  at  all,  but  are  busy  bodies," 
that  is,  busy  in  doing  nothing  to  good  purpose.  In  the  one 
sex,  gossipping  was  their  trade ;  and  in  both,  an  intermed- 
dling in  the  private  concerns  of  their  neighbors.  Far  indeed 
from  this,  was  the  character  of  the  church  in  Thessalonica 
generally — yet  some  such,  the  Apostle  found  in  it,  when 
he  visited  them  ;  and  therefore,  when  he  wrote  his  second 
Letter  to  them,  he  commanded  and  exhorted  them,  by  the 
authority  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  with  quietness  they 
should  labour,  and  eat  the  bread  of  their  own  industry  ;  and 
he  bade  the  church  to  note  the  persons  who  refused  obedi- 
ence to  this  injunction,  and  avoid  their  company,  that  they 
might  be  ashamed  ; — and,  by  this  means,  be  led  to  walk 
more  worthy  of  the  Christian  name.  This  is  the  fruit  of 
genuine  love — to  reclaim  men  from  their  faults,  instead  of 
covering  them  over  by  a  spurious  liberality.  This  is  the 
charity,  which  hides  a  multitude  of  sins,  without  counten- 
ancing any.  It  is  injustice  to  the  really  infirm  and  needy, 
for  a  man  to  refuse  to  do  his  part,  as  the  idle  man  obliged 
himself  to  do,  towards  their  relief.  It  is  kindness  to  the  indo- 
lent, therefore,  as  well  as  to  the  indigent,  to  persuade  them^ 
.  by  all  lawful  means,  to  have  business  of  their  own  ;  and  to 
note,  as  disorderly  walkers,  them  who  disobey  this  Apostolic 
command. 

It  is,  therefore,  an  example  of  the  greatest  tenderness  of 
reproof,  to  say  with  the  Apostle — "  Let  him  that  stole,  steal 
no  more  ;  but  rather  let  him  labour,  working  with  his 
hands."  It  is  better  to  engage  in  the  most  laborious  and 
servile  employment,  if  it  be  an  honest  one,  than  to  rob  God, 
and  the  community,  of  our  active  powers  of  body  or  mind  : 
and  far  more  honorable  to  ourselves,  and  ornamental  to  the 
human  character,  to  be  useful  servants,  than  princely  and  idle 
masters.  And  generally  it  is  true,  that  the  poor,  honest  la- 
borer, is  far  more  useful,  and  by  means  of  his  alms,  more 


SERMON  V.  &l 

generous  too,  than  the  idle  speculator,  who  often  grows  rich 
by  artifice,  and  not  by  diligence  in  business. 

It  is  evident  then,  that  it  is  the  will  of  God,  that  every 
man  should  have  business  of  his  own,  sufficient  to  employ  his 
time,  and  to  occupy  his  mind  :  both  to  prevent  him  from  be- 
ing hurtful  and  unhappy  ;  and  also,  to  render  him  a  bless- 
ing to  his  family  and  to  the  community.  Happy  would 
it  be  for  society,  could  every  man  be  persuaded  to  employ 
him  self  fully,  even  should  he  by  so  doing,  earn  but  a  poor 
subsistence  ;  and  far  better  for  the  individual,  however  inde- 
pendent his  circumstances,  than  to  be  earning  nothing. 

2.  In  the  second  place,  it  is  absolutely  necessary,  in  or- 
der to  obey  this  precept,  not  only  that  a  man  actually  have 
business  of  his  own,  but  that  he  know  what  his  business  is — 
that  is,  that  he  ascertain  accurately,  what  properly  belongs 
to  him,  in  the  various  relations  of  life,  in  distinction  from 
the  concerns  of  others.  God  has  given  every  one  of  us, 
some  work  to  do  ;  and  by  the  one,  or  many  talents,  given 
us  to  occupy  for  him,  and  by  the  character  of  those  talents, 
has  indicated,  with  sufficient  clearness,  in  what  sphere  of 
action,  it  is  his  will  we  should  be  employed.  Men,  I  am 
aware,  sometimes  mistake  their  calling,  and  such  men  are  to 
be  pitied.  But  ordinarily,  as  the  mind  developes*  itself,  we 
discover  to  what  avocations  God  has  adapted  our  minds, 
and  what  calling  he  would  have  us  pursue ;  and  such  is  his 
wisdom  and  goodness,  that  very  few,  among  all  mankind, 
are  fit  for  nothing.  Every  rational  creature,  if  he  be  wilfaig, 
may  be  useful  in  the  church,  and  in  the  world,  in  a  greater 
or  less  degree.  But  no  one  mind  is  fit  for  every  thing.  To 
avoid  interference  with  others  therefore,  and  to  avoid  the 
reproach  of  taking  too  much  upon  ourselves,  it  is  of  vast  im- 
portance, that  we  should  know  ourselves,  and  the  duties  to 
which  we  are  called  in  every  relation  of  life.  The  man  in 
private  life  who  imagines  himself  qualified  to  counsel  Coun- 


62  SERMON  V. 

sellors,  and  leach  Senators  wisdom,  may  easily  put  his  opin- 
ion to  the  test   by  waiting  till  the  providence  of  God,    and 
the  voice  of  the  country,  call  him  to  the  duty  :  and  the  man 
of  secular  business,  who  sets  himself  up  as  the  instructer,  or 
censor    of  the    Christian   Ministry,  may   readily    ascertain 
whether  God  has  appointed  him  to  this  service,  by  humbly 
studying  the  precepts  and  injunctions  of  the  gospel.     There 
is  no    insuperable   difficulty  in  knowing   what   our   proper 
business  is,  provided  we  are   willing  to    be   confined  to  it. 
But  when   once   the   lofty  imagination  takes  possession  of  a 
man's  mind,  that  the  whole  burden  of  regulating  society — 
and  all    the  weight  of  care,  belonging  to  every  department 
of  government,  civil  and  ecclesiastical — and  all  the  business 
of  men  of  other  professions,  rests  upon  him  ;  it  is  unavoida- 
ble, that  he  should  be   ignorant  of  his  own  proper  calling, 
and  that  he  should  become  a  busy-bod}'  in  other  men's  mat- 
ters.    This  illustration  is   sufficient  to   show  the  importance 
of  knowing  ourselves,  and  of  diligently  studying  the  chris- 
tian  precepts,  in   order   to   restrain  us   from  neglecting  our 
duties  on  the   one  hand,  and  from  interfering  with  the  con- 
cerns of  our  neighbors,  on  the  other.     I  am  sensible  that.it 
often  requires   a  nice  discernment,  to  guard  against  falling 
into  one  or  the  other  of  these   errors — that  vanity  and  self 
love,   on  the  one   side,  urge   us   on  beyond  the    bounds  of 
duty  ;  and  that  on  the  other  the  fear  of  being  thought  offi- 
cious, and  of  intermeddling  without  warrant,  draws  us  back 
from  an  attempt  to  do  good,  where  we  have  it  in  our  power. 
Still,  the   business  of  man  in  his   several  relations  is  so  well 
defined  in  the  gospel,  that  it  far   oftener   happens,-  that   we 
transgress  those  bounds,  or  come  short  of  them,  for  want  of 
consideration,  and  want  of  righteousness,  than  through  in- 
voluntary mistake  concerning  what  love  to  God,  and  love  to 
man,  requires  of  us.     If,  for  example,  I  see  a  man  about  to 
drown  himself,  or  to  set  fire  to   my  neighbour's   dwelling.. 


SERMON  V.  63 

selfishness  may  lead  me  to  say,  with  Cain,  I  am  not  my 
brother's  keeper ;  but  common  sense  teaches  me,  as  well  as 
the  law  of  love  to  my  neighbour,  that  it  is  my  business,  if 
possible,  to  prevent  the  threatened  calamity  ;  though  I  am 
neither  a  magistrate,  nor  natural  guardian  to  him,  who  is 
about  to  incur,  or  to  do  the  mischief.  It  is  necessary  there- 
fore to  know  what  properly  belongs  to  us  as  men,  as  neigh- 
bours, as  citizens,  as  parents,  as  children,  as  christians,  in 
order  to  escape,  on  the  one  hand,  the  reproach  of  meddling 
with  that  which  belongeth  not  to  us  ;  and  to  avoid,  on  the 
other,  the  omission  of  the  most  sacred  duties.  The  Apostle 
Peter  is  a  beacon  to  christians  on  this  subject ;  and  when 
he  asked  the  Lord  concerning  John,  "  Lord,  what  shall  this 
man  do .?"  Jesus  answered,  to  his  discomfiture — "  What  is  that 
to  thee  ?"  To  incur  such  a  rebuke  from  the  Son  of  God,  must, 
on  a  mind  of  religious  sensibility,  produce  such  a  loss  of 
self-esteem,  as  none  of  the  pleasures  of  officiousness  can  ever 
compensate. 

3.  But  in  the  third  place,  to  have  business  of  our  own, 
and  to  ascertain  with  clearness  and  satisfaction  what  God 
would  have  us  to  do,  is  not  enough,  unless  we  are  willing  and 
desirous  to  confine  ourselves  to  it. 

There  is  a  precept  therefore,  for  all  men,  of  universal 
bearing,  and  nearly  parallel  with  the  text. — It  requires  us 
to  be,  not  slothful,  but  diligent  in  our  business  :  increasing 
more  and  more,  in  that  love  to  God  which  is  the  fulfilling  of 
the  command — That  ye  study  to  be  quiet,  and  mind  your 
own  business — that  every  one  of  us  attend  faithfully  to  what 
belongs  to  him,  and  not  to  that  which  is,  more  properly, 
another  man's.  To  enforce  this  precept,  let  us  consider — 
First,  that  we  have  no  time  to  spare,  to  do  other  men's  busi- 
ness. God  has  given  every  man  a  great  work  to  do  for  him- 
self; and  has  lent  him  no  more  time,  than  is  necessary,  with 
all  the  diligence  he  can   use,  to   accomplish  it.     His  duties 


€4  SERMON  V. 

to  his  family,  to  his  country,  and  to  mankind,  both  secular 
and  religious  ;  as  well  as  his  duty  to  his  own  soul,  and  to 
Ood,  if  faithfully  performed,  can  leave  him  no  leisure  for  do- 
ing another's  work  :  and  whoever  attempts  it,  necessarily 
neglects  his  own,  or  does  it  ill.  And,  as  "every  one  of  us 
shall  give  account  of  himself  to  God,"  of  every  idle  word, 
and  idle  hour,  and  injurious  interference  in  the  concerns  of 
his  neighbor,  it  is  a  very  serious  mischief  to  one's  self,  if  to 
no  other,  to  be  adjudged  a  busy  body  in  other  men's  mat- 
ters. We  hear  this  kind  of  meddling  spoken  of  with  levity, 
or  with  wrath,  and  treat  it  as  a  venial  error,  and  a  light 
thing  ;  but  it  will  not  be  so  regarded,  in  the  day  of  retribu- 
tion. When  it  shall  be  found,  that  the  soul  has  been  neg~ 
lected,  through  inattention,  or  contempt  of  this  precept. 
When  God  makes  inquisition  of  a  man,  as  of  Adam,  where 
art  thou,  and  what  hast  thou  done? — When  he  shall  ask, 
hast  thou  kept  thine  heart  with  all  diligence,  and  is  the  soul, 
committed  to  thee,  safe  ? — And  it  shall  be  answered,  it  is 
lost :  for  as  thy  servant  was  busy  here  and  there  it  was 
gone — then  the  crime  of  doing  other  men's  business,  and 
neglecting  our  own,  will  be  discovered  in  its  fatal  conse- 
quences, and  its  folly  and  guilt  will  be  seen  in  its  author's 
ruin.  Then,  the  secret  will  be  revealed,  which  man  has  so 
little  curiosity  now  to  learn,  that  those  who  complain  that 
they  have  no  time  to  attend  to  religion,  were  straitened,  only 
because,  in  doing  the  business  of  others,  they  squandered  the 
time  which  should  have  been  employed  in  performing  their 
own.  So  true  is  that  staying  of  the  Apostle,  "  let  every  man 
prove  his  own  work,  then  he  shall  have  rejoicing  in  himself 
and  not  in  another."  What  motive,  more  powerful,  can  we 
reasonably  ask,  to  produce  in  us  a  diligent  attention  to  our 
"  own  business,"  and  to  lead  us  to  a  faithful  performance  of 
our  several  duties? 

There  is,  however,   another  argument,  worthy  of  equal. 


SERMON  V.  65 

nay,  of  superior  influence,  presented  us  in  the  example  of 
Jesus  Christ.  He  has  not  left  us  to  the  naked  command  of 
God,  or  to  his  own  most  wise  and  holy  injunction  ;  but  has 
left  us  an  example,  that  we  should  walk  in  his  steps.  He 
was  seasonably  engaged  about  his  Father's  business,  and  al- 
ways duly  solicitous  to  finish  the  work  which  was  given 
him  to  do.  Heloved  his  own  proper  work,  and  did  it;  and 
was,  for  this,  pronounced  "  holy,  harmless,  undefiled,  and 
separate  from  sinners."  And  though  importuned  by  one  of 
his  hearers — who  perceived  that  he  spoke  with  great  au- 
thority, so  that  all  nature  obeyed  him — to  interpose  and 
command  an  unjust  brother  to  divide  his  Father's  estate  with 
him,  he  utterly  declined,  saying ;  "  Man  !  who  made  me  a 
judge  or  divider  over  you."  O  !  how  unlike  those  officious, 
prating  men,  who  are  always  ready  to  divide  the  rich  man's 
property  for  him — who  clamor  against  the  legacies  and  be- 
quests of  the  dead,  who  had  a  right  to  do  what  they  would 
with  their  own — and  who  intermeddle,  in  every  affair  of 
Church  and  State,  of  neighborhoods  and  societies,  in  which 
they  have  no  command,  with  which  they  have  no  connexion, 
and  concerning  which,  their  censorious  and  complaining 
voice  ought  never  to  be  heard.  Such,  are  not  the  followers 
of  Christ;  or  they  follow  him  so  far  off,  that  it  is  to  be  fear- 
ed they  will  never  overtake  him.  Surely,  to  imitate  his  ex- 
ample, they  have  one  sin  to  break  off,  which  they  have  not 
yet  repented  of — one  sin  to  confess,  and  forsake,  which  they 
hardly  believe  to  be  a  sin — before  they  can  reasonably  hope 
to  find  forgiveness.  And  this  sin,  my  brethren,  most  com- 
monly exists,  and  prevails,  in  communities  who  suffer  most, 
for  want  of  employment.  Wo,  therefore,  to  them,  who  say, 
like  the  wasteful  steward,  from  mere  indolence,  "  I  cannot 
dig." 

Jesus  Christ  very  frequently  reminded  his  disciples,  of  the 
shortness  of  his  time — the  nearness  of  his  departure  out  of 
9 


06  SERMON  V. 

the  world- — and  of  the  necessity  of  being  earnestly,  and  con- 
stantly engaged,  to  complete  the  service  he  came  into  the 
world  to  perform.  This  was  reason  enough,  for  declining 
to  do  the  work  of  others-  But  it  is  a  reason  which  as  much 
applies  to  us,  and  ought  as  much  to  affect  and  influence  us,  as 
it  did  the  Saviour  of  the  world.  His  example,  in  this  respect, 
has  all  the  force  of  a  law,  and  who  can  say  he  loves  him,, 
while  he  yet  strives  not,  in  this  particular,  to  be  like  him. 
Brethren,  let  us  not  love  in  Word,  or  in  tongue  merely,  but 
in  deed  and  in  truth. 

But  there  are,  perhaps,  some  men  who  will  not  be  influ- 
enced by  either  of  the  motives  already  suggested — -who,  not- 
withstanding, are  capable  of  being  moved  by  other  consider- 
ations. To  all  such,  1  would  suggest  the  necessity  of  being 
diligent  in  their  own  proper  business,  in  order  to  being  good 
•citizens.  All  men  agree,  whether  they  believe  in  Christ,  or 
not,  that  those  who  are  most  uniformly  governed  by  the  pre- 
cepts of  the  gospel,  make  the  most  peaceable,  and  useful 
members  of  society  : — and  none  of  my  hearers,  I  trust,  are 
so  lost,  as  to  say,  they  are  willing  to  be  either  mischievous, 
or  useless  members  of  the  community.  Yet  surely,  every 
man  is  worse  than  useless,  who  serves  neither  God  nor  man: 
And  to  serve  God  is  impossible,  but  by  keeping  his  com- 
mandments ;  and  it  is  no  less  impossible,  to  do  any  good  to 
the  community,  or  not  to  do  it  harm,  by  neglecting  our  own 
concerns,  and  obstructing  other  men,  in  theirs.  Admitting 
that  there  is  less  encouragement  than  formerly,  to  honest  in- 
dustry, yet  it  is  better  for  society,  and  better  for  one's  self,  to 
labour  without  a  full  reward  for  his  services,  than  to  do 
nothing ;  and  far  better  than  to  do  hurt*  And  to  mar  the 
peace,  and  interrupt  the  work  of  others,  is  the   natural  con- 

*  This  Discourse  was  preached,  when  the  community  was  suffering  under 
commercial  depression. 


SERMON  V.  G7 

sequence  of  having  no  work  of  our  own.  Those  among  the 
Athenians,  who  spent  their  time  in  doing  nothing,  but  to  hear 
and  tell  what  was  going  on  among  their  neighbors,  are  men- 
tioned, by  the  author  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  with  an 
expression  which  implies  a  severe  censure  of  their  idleness. 
And  then,  it  is  to  be  remembered,  that  the  less  the  reward 
for  labour,  the  more  diligence  is  necessary  to  procure  an 
adequate  subsistence.  There  always  have  been  periods,  in 
the  history  of  every  people,  when  discouragements  to  enter- 
prize  and  industry  have  produced  strong  temptations  to  idle- 
ness. But  he  that  fainteth  in  such  days  of  adversity,  his 
strength  is  small.  "There  is  a  tide  in  the  affairs  of  men," 
and  when  the  current  sets  against  us,  it  will  certainly  carry 
us  away,  if  we  do  not  labour  the  harder  against  it.  And  he 
who  refuses  to  tug  at  the  oar,  because  that  tide  is  against 
him,  is  entitled  to  the  character,  neither  of  a  wise,  nor  faith- 
ful servant.  The  hand  of  God  moves  this  tide,  and  we  can 
control  our  own  destiny,  no  further  than  we  submit  alike  to 
his  providential  and  preceptive  will. 

Inasmuch,  then,  as  we  are  forbidden  to  enter  into  tempta- 
tion, and  when  tempted,  forbidden  to  submit  without  resist- 
ance, we  should  avoid  alike  the  indolence  which  is  the  parent 
of  temptation  to  officiousness,  to  censoriousness,  -and  conse- 
quently to  strife  and  every  evil  work ;  and  whether  we  wish 
to  honor  Christ,  or  to  bless  mankind — to  dwell  in  heaven, 
or  to  be  useful  on  earth — to  escape  ruin  ourselves,  or  avoid 
harming  others — let  us  listen  to  the  injunction  of  the  text, 
and  to  the  entreaty  of  Apostolic  love,  that  we  increase  more 
and  more,  in  the  same  moral  excellence,  studying  to  be 
quiet  and  peaceable,  minding  each  one  his  own  business,  as 
God  has  commanded  us,  and  so  the  God  of  love  and  peace 
will  be  with  us. 

This  subject  may  be  applied  with  peculiar  force  to  those 
who  neglect  any  duty  on  the  ground  of  their  dependance. 


68  SERMON  V. 

We  are  as  dependant  on  God  for  our  disposition  to  work, 
as  for  our  disposition  to  repent  of  our  sins  ;  and  yet,  if  any 
man  will  not  work,  the  Apostle  says,  neither  shall  he  eat ; 
and  all  honest  men  fully  subscribe  to  the  equity  of  this 
judgment.  In  like  manner,  God  says  to  every  sinner,  how- 
ever dependant  for  a  right  disposition — except  he  repent  he 
shall  perish  ;  and  with  equal  readiness,  we  ought  to  perceive 
and  feel,  and  subscribe  to  the  righteousness  of  this  decision. 
Judge,  then,  of  your  ownselves,  ye  who  condemn  the  idle 
vagrant  or  busy  body,  who  excuses  his  sin  because  God  has 
not  given  him  a  better  disposition,  whether,  in  so  doing,  you 
do  not  judge  and  condemn  yourselves,  for  neglecting  your 
duty  because  you  have  not  the  disposition  to  do  it ! 


SERMON  VI. 

-»♦#©©«««- 

A    FUNERAL    SERMON    ON    THE    LIVING. 

Psalm  xlix.  17. 

When  he  dieth  he  shall  carry  nothing  away  :  his  glory  shall  not 
descend  after  him. 

JEXEAR  this,  all  ye  people  !  Give  ear  to  it,  all  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  world — both  low  and  high,  rich  and  poor  to- 
gether :  for  the  conviction  of  it  shall  be  wisdom,  and  the 
meditation  of  it  shall  be  understanding.  Let  the  wise  of 
this  world  hear  it ;  for  they  must  die.  Let  the  fool  and  the 
brutish  person  hear  it ;  for  they  likewise  shall  perish.  Let 
the  rich  hear  it,  whose  inward  thought  is,  that  their  houses 
shall  continue  forever  ;  and  the  ambitious,  who  call  their 
lands  after  their  own  names  ;  and  let  their  posterity  hear  it, 
who  approve  their  sayings,  and  boast  themselves  in  the  mul- 
titude of  their  possessions  :  for  they  too,  like  sheep,  are  to  be 
laid  in  the  grave,  and  their  beauty  is  to  consume,  afar  from 
their  dwelling.  And,  bless  his  soul  who  will,  while  he 
lives,  and  praise  him,  as  men  may,  while  he  does  well  for 
himself,  each  of  them  shall  go  to  the  generation  of  his 
fathers  ;  and  they  who  are  in   honor,  and  without  under- 


TO  SERMON  VI. 

standing,  shall  never  see  light.  For  when  a  wicked  man 
dieth,  his  expectation  shall  perish.  I  press  this  considera- 
tion now,  because  now,  no  evil  imputation  will  divert  the  at- 
tention from  the  subject,  to  him  who  urges  it : — because, 
when  an  unchristian  acquaintance  dies,  our  mouths,  in  rela- 
tion to  his  character  and  state,  are  sealed  in  silence.  Deli- 
cacy and  tenderness  toward  the  living  forbid  us  to  say,  what 
we  unavoidably  think  ;  and  an  apprehension,  that  we  can 
benefit  the  living  as  little  as  the  dead,  constrains  us  to  sigh 
in  secret ;  and  sometimes,  perhaps,  prevents  us  from  utter- 
ing what  we  ought.  A  regard  to  the  feelings  of  surviving 
friends,  and  a  fear  of  tearing  wider  the  wound  which  death 
has  opened,  checks  our  resolution  to  make  the  wisest  use  of 
the  improvidence  of  the  dead,  and  restrains  us  from  apply- 
ing the  important  truths  of  which  it  forcibly  reminds  us. 

These  considerations,  connected  with  the  fear  of  conceal- 
ing from  mortals  the  most  interesting  facts,  induce  me  to  an- 
ticipate the  funeral  of  the  impenitent,  and  to  say  in  his  hear- 
ing, rather  than  at  his  grave,  what  would  then  be  to  him  un- 
availing— what  may  now  be  profitable  unto  all. 

Imagine  yourself  then,  child  of  the  world,  and  slave  of  sin.! 
imagine  yourself  stretched  upon  the  bier ;  and  your  soul",, 
hovering,  unseen,  around  these  walls,  and  listening  to  the 
voice  of  God,  which  now  addresses  you  : — "When  he  dieth, 
he  shall  carry  nothing  away ;  his  glory  shall  not  descend 
after  him."  Conceive,  in  short,  that  you  are  hearing  your 
own  funeral  sermon ;  and  make  application  of  it  to  .your 
present  character  and  state  :  and  the  Spirit  of  God,  perhaps, 
may  make  it  the  means  of  awakening  you  to  righteousness — 
of  saving  your  soul  from  remorse,  and  that  of  some  surviving 
friend  from  anguish. 

There — in  such  case  we  should  say,  looking  anxiously 
around  upon  the  assembly — there  lies  the  body  of  a  world- 
ling !     One  who  loved  not  God — one   of  the  number  who 


SERMON  VI.  71 

often  sat  with  us  in  the  place  of  worship,  to  hear  the  word. 
He  was  one  of  those  favored  few  in  our  miserable  world, 
who  heard  the  messages  of  salvation  ;  who  were  instructed 
in  the  duties  of  Christianity,  warned  of  the  deceitfulness  of 
sin,  and  taught  the  way  to  life  and  immortality.  But  he 
was  a  sinner.  He  loved  the  world  ;  and  in  the  earth,  and 
the  rubbish  of  earthly  good,  he  buried  all  his  thoughts. 
The  love  of  the  Father  was  not  in  him.  He  saw,  in  the  Sa- 
viour of  sinners,  no  beauty  that  he  should  desire  him  ;  and 
he  was  a  stranger  to  the  duties  and  pleasures  of  communion 
with  a  reconciled  God.  Such  is  the  character  over  which 
we  mourn.  He  laid  up  many  treasures  on  earth,  but  he 
failed  to  secure  a  mansion,  and  a  portion,  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven.  In  an  unexpected  hour,  God  has  summoned  him  to 
judgment ;  and  we  are  left  to  profit  by  the  reflections  the 
event  has  suggested,  and  to  meditate  on  such  a  character 
and  such  an  end  ! 

Let  us  now  collect  ourselves — Let  us  coolly  look  over 
all  of  his  possessions,  native  and  acquired,  and  all  which 
could  have  delighted  him,  and  see  how  the  word  of  God  is 
verified  ; — how,  of  all  the  treasures  he  had  amassed,  and  of 
all  the  glory  he  had  gotten,  nothing  has  descended  after 
him,  nothing  has  been  carried  with  him,  to  nourish  and 
comfort  him  in  the  country  to  which  he  has  departed. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  those  exterior  accomplishments,  to 
the  acquisition  of  which,  he  successfully  devoted  the  morn- 
ing of  his  days,  are  lost  to  him  forever.  To  his  native 
comeliness  of  form,  and  beauty  of  proportions,  he  added, 
by  an  assiduous  cultivation  of  his  manners,  all  that  is  grace- 
ful in  the  person,  and  winning  in  the  beholder's  eye.  He 
moved  with  elegance  in  the  dance,  charmed  the  social  circle 
with  the  ease  and  gracefulness  of  his  conversation ;  and 
every  instrument  of  music,  lost  its  power  of  attraction,  in 
the  superior  sweetness  of  his  song.     Festive  joys,  and  their 


72  SERMON  VI. 

commanding  influence,  were  all  overlooked  by  means  of  the 
presence  of  this  convivial  guest ;  and  even  sensibility  for- 
got her  pleasures,  and  envy  hissed  in  secret,  because  of  the 
acknowledged  charms  of  his  society. 

But  the  evil  day  has  come  :  his  sun  has  set  :  his  native 
beauty  is  consumed  as  a  moth-eaten  garment.  Those 
sprightly  limbs  move  no  more  in  the  dance,  and  all  the 
daughters  of  music  are  brought  low.  The  door  of  the 
guest-chamber  no  more  opens  to  receive  him — his  tongue 
is  no  longer  the  pen  of  a  ready  writer — the  spirit  has  return- 
ed to  God  who  gave  it,  and  the  mourners  go  about  the 
-streets.  And  is  not  he  a  mourner  too  ?  What,  of  all  these 
accomplishments,  has  he  carried  with  him  to  the  grave  ;  and 
what,  of  all  the  glory  they  yielded  him,  has  descended  with 
him  to  the  tomb  !  Senseless  as  any  other  heap  of  earth, 
there  lies  his  body — and  }'onder,  stripped  of  all  its  glory, 
empty  and  naked,  flits  away  the  soul. 

2.  But  let  us  suppose,  in  the  second  place,  that  he  had 
gotten  all  the  means  of  pleasure  ;  and,  initiated  into  the 
mysteries  of  her  court,  knew  how  to  give  sensitive  gratifica- 
tion its  highest  relish.  He  had  learned  to  make  all  his 
senses,  the  inlets  of  high  enjoyment ;  and  to  exclude,  from 
an  entrance  into  his  heart,  whatever  of  sober  thought,  and 
saddening  influence,  checked  the  current  of  delight.  He 
had  learned  to  evade  the  troubles  common  to  man's  state  ; 
and  by  hastening  on  from  tried,  to  novel  scenes  of  entertain- 
ment ;  and  by  changing  often,  the  objects  of  animal  gratifi- 
cation— his  viands  and  his  books,  his  climate  and  his  com- 
panions, and  his  countless  instruments  of  pleasure— -he  had 
learned  to  be  ever  sipping,  and  yet  never  cloyed  by  tasting, 
of  the  cup  of  sensual  joy.  But  the  curtain  has  fallen!  The 
drama  of  his  delight  is  closed.  The  eye,  the  ear,  the  palate, 
and  all  the  organs  on  whose  action  his  pleasures  were  sus- 
pended, are  now  locked  up  within  that  coftin,  and  his  con- 


SERMON  VI.  1$ 

nection  with  them  is  dissolved.  He  is  cut  off  from  all  his 
chosen  scenes  of  entertainment,  and  sources  of  enjoyment ; 
and  which  of  the  streams  has  followed  him  to  the  tomb  ? 

3.  But  suppose,  in  the  third  place,  he  had  acquired 
great  possessions:  that  he  lived,  not  merely  to  eat  and  drink, 
and  to  gratify  sensual  desire ;  but  that  he  rose  with  the  sun, 
and  did  eat  the  bread  of  carefulness  ;  and  for  the  success  of 
his  daily  toil,  men  blessed  him  ;  and,  for  the  reward  of  his 
industrious  life,  he  saw  around  him  many  fields  which  his 
labours  had  acquired,  and  groves  his  hands  had  planted,  and 
an  enlarged  fold  of  flocks  and  herds,  full  barns,  and  houses 
loaded  with  the  rich  fruits  of  his  toil.  He  had  much  enjoy- 
ment in  looking  back  upon  his  beginning,  in  calculating 
his  gains,  in  surveying  the  products  of  his  ingenuity,  of  his 
successful  schemes  for  accumulating  treasures,  and  in  con- 
templating his  superior  affluence,  to  that  of  men  of  equal 
strength  of  sagacity,  and  equal  advantages  in  business. 
Envy  saw  him,  and  was  grieved  :  he  looked  down  and 
blessed  the  soul  surrounded  with  abundance. 

Behold  him  now  !  His  soul  required  of  him  ;  and  his 
body,  worn  out  in  the  service  of  Mammon,  lost  to  the  enjoy- 
ment of  all  these  possessions.  He  labored  to  be  rich — suc- 
ceeded— and  died  !  Which  now,  of  all  his  variety  .of  posses- 
sions, does  he  call  his  own  ?  Ask  him  of  his  lands — he  gives 
you  no  answer.  Offer  him  the  choicest  of  his  idols — death 
has  taken  them  from  him,  and  what  has  he  left  ?  Talk  of  his 
acquisitions — the  glory  of  them  can  go  no  further  after  him, 
than  to  the  monument  over  his  grave  ;  and  there,  his  des- 
cendants are  ashamed  to  write  his  real  character.  Can  he 
now  say,  Soul  take  thine  ease  ;  thou  hast  much  goods  in 
store  ?  Before  that  soul  shall  again  animate  the  body,  by 
whose  joint  influence  those  goods  were  acquired,  they  will 
have  been  burned  up,  and  he  will  reclaim  his  golden  gods 
in  vain.  Nothing,  then,  on  which  he  has  set  his  heart,  has 
10 


74  SERMON  VI. 

gone  with  him  to  comfort  him — nothing  to  feed  his  passions : 
for  every  thing  which  was  corporeal  is  left  below,  and  his 
spirit  is  confined  to  a  state,  in  which  no  carnal  passion  can 
ever  be  gratified. 

4.     But,  in  the  fourth  place,  you  will  tell  me  he  had  a 
vigorous  mind  ;  and,  that  among  all  his  gettings,  he  was  not 
neglectful  of  intellectual  acquisitions.     I  grant  you  the  fact. 
I  will  admit  that  he  was  fitted,  like  Newton,  to  explore  the 
worlds  which  revolve  in  yonder  heavens  ;  that  with  Locke, 
he  could  survey  that  darker  world,   the  human  understand- 
ing ;  that  with  the  Statesman  he  could  guide  the  wheels    of 
government,  and  teach  senators  wisdom  :  and  that  with  the 
Academician,  he  was  qualified  to  train   to  future  greatness 
the  aspiring  youthful  mind,  and  even   the   master  with    the 
scholar.     But  mark  you   now,   how  empty   is   that  skull  I 
adorned  once,  with  all  the  learning  of  the  sage,  and  richly 
stored  with  all  the  fruits  which  human  science  ever  matured. 
But  its  knowledge  was  only  of  this  world — a  knowledge  of 
the  head,    which,   without  religion,   only    puffeth   up,    and 
which  like  the  world  itself,  to  whose  use   it  was  confined, 
was  destined  of  God  to  vanish  away.     His  mental  acquisi- 
tions were  of  that  kind  only,  which  do   but  engender  pride", 
and    minister  to  its  condemnation.      And  what  advantage, 
what  comfort  has  he,  over  the  ideot  and  the  fool,  so  long  as 
his  intellectual  attainments  have  not  advanced  him  a  step  in 
the  kingdom  of  God  ;  and  so  his  eminence  served   only  to 
render  more  commanding  the  prospect  before  him,  and. more 
terrible  the  height  from  which    he  is   precipitated.     Alas  f 
be  has  carried  nothing  of  science  away  with  him,   which  he 
can  apply,  in  so  different  a  state,  for  his  consolation.       His 
glory,  indeed,  is  left  behind  on  monumental  marble,  on  the 
column  of  the  Capitol,  the  canvass  of  the  Senate-chamber, 
or  the  parchment  of  the  Academic  register;  but  there    it  is 
doomed  to  perish,  instead  of  following  him,  like   the  good 


SERMON  VI.  7u 

works  of  the  Christian,  to  the  tribunal  of  his  judge,  and  suc- 
cessfully advocating  there,  his  title,  through  faith,  to  the 
inheritance  of  the  sons  of  God. 

5.  But,  in  the  fifth  place, he  had  a  reputation  and  a  fame 
which  survive  him  ;  and,  as  the  power  tof  reflection  is  not 
lost  with  the  animal  life,  shall  he  not  at  least  by  a  retrospec- 
tive employment,  beguile  the  darkness  of  his  descending 
way  ?  Those  cheering  praises,  which  followed  him  through 
all  the  walks  of  life — which  met  him  when  he  went  out,  and 
went  after  him  when  he  returned  to  the  privacies  of  domes- 
tic retirement — and  the  fame,  which  promised  him  a  post- 
humous immortality — shall  not  they,  by  the  exercise  of 
man's  prerogative,  break  through  even  the  barrier  of  the 
grave,  and  open  one  avenue,  through  which  pleasure  shall 
find  an  entrance  to  his  soul  ?  Forlorn  and  wretched  ex- 
pectation !  One  paean,  even  while*  here,  must  rise  upon 
another ;  and  one  voice  follow  another,  and  echo  his 
praises,  and  prolong  his  fame,  to  supply  the  gratifi- 
cation of  his  ruling  passion.  How  then,  in  a  condition 
where  the  voice  of  man  is  no  longer  heard,  and  in  which 
the  trump  of  fame  is  changed  into  the  vision  and  the 
transparencies  of  truth,  shall  such  reflections  cheer  his 
heart  ?  There  is  no  correspondence,  between  the  reflec- 
tions of  the  world  of  spirits,  and  the  lying  vanities  of  this 
illusive  state.  There  is  no  connection,  between  departed 
spirits,  and  flesh  and  blood.  Between  us  and  them,  there 
is  a  great  gulph  fixed,  across  which,  no  communications  are 
borne  :  for  so,  the  word  of  God  would  be  belied,  and  work, 
device,  and  knowledge  of  things  present,  would  survive  an 
entrance  to  the  grave.  We  leave,  to  the  credulity  of  chil- 
dren, the  apparitions  of  the  dead ;  and  to  them,  who  dream 
in  the  wakefulness  of  the  fanatic,  the  fancy  of  conversing 
with  departed  spirits ;  and  binding  our  faith  to  the  word  o{ 
God,  we  affirm,  that  the  dead  know  not   any  thing  of  the 


76  SERMON  VI. 

living,*  and  have  no  more  a  portion  in  any  thing  done  un- 
der the  sun.  Even  the  reputation  for  piety,  therefore, 
which,  through  sinful  confidence  in  men,  so  nourished  their 
hopes,  and  fortified  their  presumption  and  security,  when 
living,  withdraws  its  poor  and  withered  consolations  from 
the  spirits  of  the  dead  ;  and  in  the  realities  of  unshrouded 
consciousness,  that  reputation  is  obliviated  :  all  is  gone,  but 
the  lines  which  memory  draws  of  the  vanity  of  sinful  expec- 
tations. 

Thus  lives  the  departed  spirit— unable  to  avoid  that 
presence  of  its  abused  God,  which  it  too  successfully  at- 
tempted, while  in  the  body,  to  shun.  Stripped  of  all  which 
ministered  to  its  pleasure  when  united  to  it,  and  separated 
from  all  the  instruments  of  its  enjoyment ;  all  its  habits 
broken — its  modes  of  thought,  and  of  existence,  changed — 
void  of  good  when  looking  forward,  and  without  one  object 
of  refreshing  contemplation  when  it  looks  behind  !  So  is 
every  one  when  he  dieth,  who  layeth  up  treasures  only  on 
the  earth,  and  is  not  rich  towards  God. 

But  I  have  shown  you  hitherto,  only  the  negative  evils, 
which  God  has  appointed  to  that  soul ;  and  these  are  but  its 
lesser  evils.  For,  although  we  can  readily  conceive  one's 
wretchedness  to  be  excessive,  when  only  deprived  of  the  in- 

*  The  Author  has  a  right  to  his  own  opinion,  though  some  have  taught  a 
different  doctrine.  The  passages  from  Ecclesiastes  will  not  support  him  ; 
since  the  object  of  that  book  is  not  so  much  to  teach  direct  truth,  as  to 
give  us  a  picture  of  the  confused  speculations  of  a  mind,  distracted  by 
doubt  as  to  the  chief  happiness  of  man.  On  any  other  supposition,  the 
book  would  teach  flat  infidelity.  For  example — Chap.  iii.  verse  1,9 — "  For 
that  which  befalleth  the  sons  of  men  befalleth  beasts ;  even  one  thing  be- 
falleth  them  :  as  the  one  dieth,  so  dieth  the  other."  Consider  this,  as  the 
soliloquy  of  a  heart,  seeking  repose  in  unbelief,  and  it  is  easily  explained  ; 
but  if  it  is  direct  doctrine,  it  is  very  dark.  Angels  know,  and  are  interested 
in,  the  affairs  of  this  world  ;  and  is  it  clear  that  its  events  are  unknown  to 
the  dead  ? 


SERMON  VI.  77 

druments  on  which  it  has  always  depended  for  enjoyment ; 
yet  such  would  be  a  state  comparatively  tolerable,  might  the 
soul  be  allowed  to  hope  to  form  new  associations,  new  habits, 
and  obtain  new  sources  of  gratification  for  its  passions.  But 
for  such  a  hope,  there  is  not  in  all  the  book  of  God,  a  soli- 
tary support — 

6.  But,  in  the  sixth  place,  the  word  of  God  assures  us 
that  all  the  means  of  gratification  shall  at- death  be  taken  away 
from  the  worldling.  The  new  companions  of  his  soul,  shall  be 
a  source  of  more  vexation,  and  greater  terror,  than  the  old. 
These  companions,  it  is  explicitly  told  us,  are  spirits  of 
greater  malignity,  and  power,  than  himself — spirits,  before 
their  defection  from  God,  of  greater  eminence  in  knowledge, 
and  in  power ;  and  who,  having  lost  nothing  of  those  attri- 
butes, are  capable  of  becoming  more  extensively  mischievous 
to  the  apostates  of  our  race.  To  the  land  of  despair  then, 
the  wicked  man  cannot  carry  the  means  he  now  enjoys, 
either  of  present  comfort,  with  creatures  like  himself;  nor 
the  means  at  present  in  his  possession,  of  avoiding  their 
doom  and  of  becoming  happy.  He  lodges  now,  with  the 
hopeless,  and  therefore,  with  the  most  malignant.  His  soul 
is  beyond  the  region  of  invitation,  of  repentance,  and  par- 
don and  praise.  No  messenger  from  earth,  and  (as  Christ 
has  shown  us,  in  the  Parable  of  the  rich  man  and  Lazarus,) 
none  from  heaven,  descends  with  the  good  tidings.  He 
hears  it  said  no  more,  "  he  that  believeth  shall  be  saved" — 
There  is  an  end  to  faith  when  vision  comes.  No  sabbath 
there  opens  the  gates  of  the  sanctuary,  and  points  to  a  refuge 
from  guilt.  No  ambassador  of  God,  looking  across  the 
gulph,  is  suffered  to  cry  in  fervent  prayer,  God  be  merciful 
to  that  sinner.  The  door  is  shut,  and  the  means  of  salva- 
vation  and  the  end  together,  too  long  disregarded,  are  for- 
ever lost.  His  pious  friends  will  no  more  wet  his  pillow 
with  their  tears  ;  the  pity  of  angels  no  longer  desire  to  look 


T8  SERMON  VI. 

into  his  condition ;  and  the  compassion  of  a  dying  and  in- 
terceding Saviour,  no  longer  defer  the  execution  of  the 
threatened  evil,  when,  to  him,  the  great  day  of  his  wrath  is 
come. 

If  such  be  the  condition — Immortal  hearer  !  of  the  depart- 
ed sinner :  if  he  have  indeed,  carried  nothing  away  which 
his  heart  held  dear,  nor  even  the  means  of  becoming  better, 
which  he  held  not  dear  ;  then,  what  remains  to  his  soul  but 
remorse  and  wretchedness  ineffable  !  It  can  remember  its 
former  pleasures,  only  to  regret  their  loss  ;  its  former  ad- 
vantages, only  to  lament  their  abuse  ;  and  listen  to.  the  an- 
thems above,  only  to  know,  with  indescribable  pain,  that  it 
has  no  portion  in  those  songs  of  elevated  joy ;  and  feel  the 
dereliction  and  the  displeasure  of  God,  without  the  possibil- 
ity of  diverting  the  thoughts  from  these  objects  of  contem- 
plation, by  the  enjoyments  of  an  animal  nature,  and  the  grati- 
fication of  animal  passions. 

If  therefore,  he  suffer  only  frOm  what  he  has  actually  lost, 
his  sufferings  must  be  extreme  ;  for  it  is  his  all.  But  when 
to  that,  is  added  the  positive  punishment  threatened  to  the 
unholy,  his  wretchedness  becomes  such  as  mortal  eye  hath 
not  seen,  nor  ear  heard — such  as  has  scarcely  entered  into 
the  heart  of  man,  on  this  side  the  grave,  to  conceive. 

Thus,  heir  of  the  wisdom  which  descendeth  not  from 
above  !  I  have  labored  to  place  you,  in  your  own  view,  in 
the  condition  to  which  every  impenitent  sinner  is  destined  : 
rfnd  though  the  imagination,  which  has  thus  for  a  little  time 
laid  you  in  the  grave,  can  also  bring  you  back  again  ;  yet 
I  entreat  you  to  remember,  that  what  /  have  imagined,  ex- 
cept you  repent,  you  will  ere  long  realize.  And  should  it 
be  so — should  you  indeed  carry  nothing  away  with  you,  in 
which  you  now  delight ;  and  should  nothing  of  the  glory 
you  have  yet  obtained,  descend  after  you — I  entreat  you  to 
enquire  diligently,  what,  in  the  multitude  of  your  thoughts 


SERMON  VI.  79 

within  you,  (for  thought  you  will  still  retain)  what  comforts, 
will  delight  your  soul  !  And  O  !  what  alleviation  of  their 
sorrows,  in  such  case,  will  you  leave  for  your  surviving 
friends  ?  And  though,  from  prudential  motives,  no  man 
should  repeat  to  them,  at  your  death,  this  train  of  evangeli- 
cal reflections,  they  will  nevertheless  be  just.  Though  now. 
you  may  think  them  incorrect,  they  will  remain  none  the 
less  true.  The  believer  in  Jesus,  looks  beyond  the  grave. 
He,  faintly  indeed,  but  truly,  apprehends,  #the  state  of  those 
who  die  impenitent,  to  be  what  from  the  inspired  record  I 
have  imperfectly,  but  faithfully  described  ;  and  your  bereav- 
ed friends,  though  they  will  not,  cannot  express  these  truths, 
will  still  almost  unavoidably  find  them  revived  in  their 
minds  :  and  you  yourself,  more  miserable  still,  with  agoniz- 
ing power  will  feel  them  all. 

If  then,  there  be  any  thing  novel  in  the  elucidation,  to 
render  the  truth  impressive — any  thing  forcible  in  the  meth- 
od of  its  application — for  your  friends''  sake,  for  your  own 
sake,  shrink  not  from  the  appeal  now  made  to  your 
understanding,  your  sympathy,  your  sensibility ;  but 
yield  to  the  conviction  that  you  must  repent  or  perish — 
that  the  world,  and  all  it  can  impart,  cannot  be  gain  to  you, 
in  exchange  for  your  soul ;  and  choose  a  part,  and,  pursue  a 
portion,  which  you  can  carry  away ;  and  seek  a  glory,  an 
honor,  a  fame,  which  will  descend  after  you,  and  never  leave 
from  following  you,  till  it  have  fulfilled  the  every  promise 
of  Jehovah  to  the  just. 

We  see  now,  what  cause  the  Christian  indeed,  has,  to  be 
contented  with  his  lot.  With  a  holy  temper,  he  possesses 
not  merely  the  one,  but  the  every  thing,  which  is  needful. 
And  is  it  possible  such  an  one  should  repine  ?  If  you  are  a 
Christian,  you  have  the  spirit  of  Jesus  Christ ;  and  with 
this,  you  are  happy,  whether  in  poverty  or  in  affluence — 
whether  loved  or  hated,  and    whether   you   remain   in   the 


se  SERMON  VI. 

body  or  depart.  God  is  your  portion,  and  heaven  your  in- 
heritance. You  indeed,  no  less  than  the  wicked,  hasten  to 
the  grave ;  but  with  what  different  emotions,  and  to  how 
different  a  destiny  !  They  carry  nothing  with  them,  of  all 
they  loved — you  leave  nothing  of  this  character  behind,  but 
what  shall  soon  follow  you.  When  they  die,  survivors  weep 
only  for  them,  like  Christ  at  the  gate  of  devoted  Jerusalem.' 
Their  tears,  when  you  die,  fall  not  for  you,  but  for  them- 
selves. Theirs,  on  the  death  bed,  if  not  obdurate  as  the 
nether  millstone,  are  emotions  of  unutterable  horror — Yours 
in  a  similar  condition,  of  joy  unspeakable,  and  full  of  glory. 
The  wicked  go  to  a  region  like  their  souls — a  region  of 
thick  darkness  ;  but  the  humble  believer,  to  a  region  of 
light  and  joy  unspeakable.  At  the  voice  of  the  archangel 
and  the  trump  of  God,  the  wicked  will  resume  the  connec- 
tion with  their  bodies,  only  to  endure  the  visible  marks  of 
shame  and  everlasting  contempt — the  righteous,  at  the  same 
moment,  to  appear  in  the  likeness  of  Christ's  glorious  body, 
and  to  perfect  the  holiness  and  happiness,  his  grace  has 
pledged,  to  all  his  faithful  followers.  Consider  what  has 
been  said  :  and  say,  in  the  undissembled  language  of  the 
heart,  whether  it  be  better,  to  take  the  character,  the  glory, 
and  the  destiny  of  the  worlding  •  or  to  live  and  die  a  chrisr 
tian  ! 


SERMON  VII. 

CHRISTIAN    DILIGENCE. 

Hebrews  vi.  11,  12. 

And  toe  desire — that  ye  be  not  slothful,  but  folloioers  of  them  who 
tlwough  faith  and  patience  inherit  the  promises. 

1  KNOW  of  no  one  virtue  more  frequently  inculcated,  or 
to  which  promises  of  greater  interest  are  made  in  the  Gos- 
pel, than  that  of  Christian  Diligence.  It  is  to  this,  the 
Apostle  ascribes  the  attainment  of  fortitude,  knowledge,  tem- 
perance, patience,  godliness  and  charity.  It  is  only  by 
eminence  in  it,  that  we  arrive  at  the  full  assurance  of  hope, 
and  make  our  calling  and  our  election  sure.  The  Apostle 
Peter,  in  sight  of  the  heavens  on  fire,  and  the  dissolving 
earth,  and  a  God  descending  to  judgment,  sums  up  the  whole 
duty  of  man,  in  this  pressing  exhortation — "Wherefore  be- 
loved, seeing  that  ye  look  for  such  things,  be  diligent ;  thai 
ye  may  be  found  of  him  in  peace,  without  spot  and  blame- 
less." Emulous  of  so  vast  a  good  as  is  comprehended  in 
this  description,  man,  aspiring  and  immortal,  but  mistaking 
its  nature  and  place,  has  sought  it  in  every  object  below  the 
skies  ;  traversed  uninhabited  continent?,  explored  every  field 
11 


82  SERMON  VII. 

of  science,  and  fathomed  every  ocean.  But  with  the  depth, 
each  in  turn  has  said,  "  it  is  not  in  me."  It  cannot,  there- 
fore, but  be  worthy  of  our  enterprize,  to  make  ourselves  ac- 
quainted with  the  virtuous  course,  at  the  end  of  which,  God 
assures  us  it  will  be  found  ;  and  also,  with  some  considera- 
tions calculated  to  enforce  the  duty  of  leaving  every  other 
course,  to  follow  the  bright  career  of  those,  who,  by  this 
means,  are  now  actually  inheriting  the  promises. 

I.  Let  us  first  make  ourselves  acquainted  with  that  vir- 
tue, to  which  so  much  is  promised. 

Christian  diligence  has  for  its  end,  the  glory  and  enjoy- 
ment of  God,  in  opposition  to  every  other  species  of  aggran- 
dizement :  it  has  the  character  of  decision,  in  opposition  to 
procrastination  :  of  activity,  in  opposition  to  listlessness  and 
sloth  :  of  vigilance,  in  opposition  to  incaution  :  and  of  per- 
severance and  constancy,  in  opposition  to  discouragement. 

1.  Christian  diligence,  in  the  first  place,  has  the  glory 
and  enjoyment  of  God  for  its  end,  in  opposition  to  every 
other  species  of  aggrandizement. 

To  be  diligent,  without  regard  to  the  end,  is,  confessedly, 
■no  virtue ;  and  for  an  unworthy  end,  as  obviously  a  crime. 
But,  on  christian  principles,  his  end  only  is  entitled  to  the 
character  of  virtuous,  who,  not  slothful  in  business,  is  fervent 
in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord.  The  perfections  of  God,  his 
works,  and  his  relation  to  us,  give  him  an  exclusive  and  per- 
feet  claim,  to  our  first  and  best  affections.  His  glory  was 
the  end  of  all  his  works,  and  especially  of  the  creation  of 
man,  whom  he  made  eminently  for  himself,  and  for  the  ex- 
press purpose  of  declaring  his  glory.  He,  of  consequence, 
who  will  not  voluntarily  co-operate  with  him  to  the  same 
end,  is,  by  the  very  law  of  his  being,  destitute  of  moral 
worth,  and  incapable  of  the  enjoyment,  which  only  the  love 
of  the  Deity  can  beget  or  confer.  Without  this,  therefore, 
for  his  primary  end,  .all   his    labors    terminate   on   objects 


SERMON  VII.  83 

whose  pursuit  is  criminal ;  and  in  whose  nature  is  contained 
a  source  of  enjoyment,  neither  permanent  nor  pure.  And 
when  God,  at  the  close  of  his  labours,  shall  make  inquisition, 
(as  he  will  do  of  every  man)  his  mouth  will  be  stopped,  by 
the  inquiry  into  their  design — "have  ye  done  it  at  all  unto 
me  ?"  Or,  if  he  have  the  daring  to  put  in  a  plea  for  the 
reward  of  his  unchristian  labours,  another  inquiry  will  con- 
found all  his  expectations — who  required  these  at  your 
hands  ? 

2.  Christian  diligence  has  the  character  of  decision,  in 
opposition  to  procrastination.  When  it  is  convenient — con- 
sidered as  a  reply  to  the  command  of  God — is  the  answer  of 
a  rebellious  heart.  Nothing  is  required  of  us  to-morrow: 
We  are  creatures  of  a  day ;  therefore  it  is  said,  "  to-day,  if 
ye  will  hear  his  voice,  harden  not  your  hearts."  To-mor- 
row, should  it  come,  will  bring  with  it  its  own  full  share  of 
duties;  and  if  those  of  to-day  be  postponed  to  it,  they  will 
be  omitted  by  a  necessity  of  our  own  making.  The  very 
will  to  delay,  therefore,  is  destructive  of  the  nature  of  vir- 
tue :  for  no  man  performs  his  duty,  but  he  who  prevents  the 
possibility  of  his  never  doing  it :  and  who  does  not  know, 
that  his  times  are  in  God's  hands.  To  fix  on  a  future  peri- 
od, for  the  exercise  of  faith  in  the  Redeemer,  benevolence  to 
rational  beings,  penitence  for  sin,  and  gratitude  and  hope 
towards  God,  is  actually  to  deny  our  obligations :  it  is  virtu- 
ally to  reject  the  reign  of  God,  and  the  whole  system  of 
Christianity  ;  and  he  who  does  this,  is  lost.  Such  an  one 
debases  his  rational  nature  below  mere  instinct :  for  the 
stork  in  the  heavens,  knoweth  her  appointed  time  ;  and  the 
turtle,  the  crane,  and  the  swallow  observe  it.  Delay  of  any 
duty,  to  God  or  man,  a  moment  beyond  the  season  in  which 
it  is  required  of  God,  is  incompatible  with  Christian  dili- 
gence :  else,  the  wisdom  of  God  had  not  concealed  from  us 
the  term  of  our  life,  and  the  bound  of  our  habitation.     To- 


84  SERMON  VII. 

day,  you  have  wealth  to  employ,  as  (he  steward  of  God  : 
to-morrow,  its  wings  shall  be  fledged,  and  it  will  fly  away, 
as  an  eagle,  towards  the  heavens.  To-day,  j'ou  have  an 
altar,  on  which  to  offer  spiritual  sacrifices  by  Jesus  Christ : 
to-morrow,  it  shall  be  digged  down.  To-day,  you  have  all 
the  attributes  of  a  man :  to-morrow,  reason  shall  be  taken  to 
its  native  skies.  Decision,  then,  in  opposition  to  procrasti- 
nation, is  an  essential  characteristic  of  Christian  diligence. 

3.    It  has  also,  in  the  third  place,  the  character  of  activity, 
in  opposition  to  sloth.     God  has  made  us  for  action ;  and 
therefore,  with  a  consistency  worthy  of  him,  promised  noth- 
ing to  sloth.     "  Do  it  with    thy  might,"  is  the  command  of 
the  lawgiver  :  abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord,  the  des- 
cription of  the  obedient.     Outer  darkness,  and  gnashing  of 
teeth,  is  the   portion   of  the  wicked  and   slothful  servant. 
The  joint  activity  of  mind,  heart,  and  members  of  the  body, 
is  essential  to  the  performance  of  every  duty,  in  every  rela- 
tion.    Without  it,  we  can  never  have  the  knowledge  neces- 
sary to  sanctify  our  zeal,  nor  the  zeal  which  is  necessary  to 
goodness.     The  bed  of  effeminacy  is  a  soil,  in  which  no  vir- 
tues flourish.     Of  the  Christian  life,  a  race,  and  a  warfare, 
are  the  images  j  and  who  would  think  of  taking  his  ease  in 
a  race,  or  talk  of  moderation  in  a  battle  !    Irresolution  was 
never  known  to  gain  the  one,  nor  sluggishness   to  win  the 
other.     These  are   qualities,  ever  accompanied  with  empti- 
ness of  virtue,  and  followed  with  poverty  of  possession. 

4.  Christian  diligence,  in  the  fourth  place,  has  the  char- 
acter of  vigilance,  in  opposition  to  slumber  and  incaution. 
It  is  no  inconsiderable  part  of  pure  and  undefiled  religion, 
to  keep  unspotted  from  the  world  :  and  to  be  found  of  God 
in  peace,  without  spot  and  blameless,  is  the  very  object  of 
the  virtue  we  describe.  A  careless  traveller,  in  a  strange 
land  of  many  paths,  must  be  expected  to  lose  his  way.  The 
ship  will  hardly  fail  to  be  stranded,  which  -  approaches  the 


SERMON  VII.  85 

coast  in  a  tempest,  with  every  mariner  below.  The  heed- 
less ou  slippery  places,  must  fall  :  and  the  centinel,  who 
sleeps  when  the  camp  is  surprised,  must  die. 

Who  then,  has  the  temerity  to  hope  to  keep  himself,  with- 
out watchfulness,  in  the  midst  of  artful  enemies  without,  and 
insidious  and  ensnaring  foes  within  ?  In  the  midst  of  a  world, 
where  all  is  alluring  and  false — all  fiction,  and  disguise. 
Let  him  who  is  so  weak,  so  credulous,  and  incautious,  re- 
member that  what  the  Lord  said  unto  his  disciples,  he  said 
unto  all — "  Watch." 

5.  Finally,  Christian  diligence  has  the  character  ofper- 
severanee  and  constancy,  in  opposition  to  discouragement. 
Though  the  songs  of  syrens  echo  from  behind,  and  the  flesh 
pots  of  Egypt  send  after  him  their  odours ;  though  before 
him,  is  the  painfulness  of  incessant  labour,  the  fatigue  of 
watchful  and  wearisome  nights,  and  the  crosses  of  an  op- 
posing flesh,  and  the  scoffs  of  a  profane  and  calumniating 
world  ;  and  "  though  rocks  and  dangers  fill  the  way" — it 
remains  the  judgment  of  God,  that  he  who  looketh  back,  or 
lingers  in  his  step,  is  unfit  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  And 
though  hope  keep  forward,  and  often  disappears  as  he 
mounts  after  her  to  one  eminence  over  another ;  and  though, 
with  all  his  exertion,  he  is  still  behind — yet,  on  the  very 
banner  under  which  he  first  enlisted,  he  still  reads  the  in- 
scription  THROUGH    MUCH    TRIBULATION  WE    MUST    ENTER 

THE  KINGDOM  :  VALOR  BEFORE  CONFLICT,  CONFLICT  BEFORE 

victory,  and  victory  before  the  spoil.     And  under  all 
this,  it  is  written,  if  any  man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall 

HAVE  NO  PLEASURE   IN  HIM. 

All  who  hear,  have  been  made  acquainted  with  their  duty 
and  with  the  desire  of  every  benevolent  heart ;  and  now,  that 
you  may  be  induced  to  perform  that  duty,  and  to  fulfil  that 
holy  desire — 

II.     Look  to  the  departed  pious  friends  of  man  ;  and  re- 


86      .  SERMON  VII. 

member  that  though  they  have  done  with  earth,  we  have  not 
done  with  them,  when  we  have  laid  them  in  the  tomb.  The 
eye,  indeed,  no  longer  dwells  upon  their  persons,  the  ear  no 
more  listens  to  their  counsels  :  but  faith  follows  their  im- 
mortal spirits,  and  communes  with  them  in  glory.  Retrace 
the  paths  they  trod,  and  derive  some  salutary  lesson  from 
the  end  to  which  they  led.  Their  histories  are  recorded  in 
our  memories,  and  our  bibles,  that  by  their  example  we  may 
be  urged  to  duty.  None  of  them  lived,  none  died,  to  him- 
self. And  now  Goo  commands  us,  and  they  intreat  us,  to 
follow  them,  through  faith  and  patience,  to  the  same  exalted 
state.  They  inherit  the  promises  :  to  follow  them,  is  to  gain 
the  same  inheritance.  They  stand  before  the  throne  of  God ; 
they  dwell  in  the  city  of  the  great  King  :  travelling  the 
same  way,  with  equal  alacrity,  will  bring  us  to  the  same 
temple,  and  the  same  God.  They  have  escaped  all  dan- 
gers, and  overcome  all  enemies  :  under  the  same  Captain, 
girded  with  the  same  armor,  and  contending  with  like  earn- 
estness, we  also  shall  escape,  and  triumph.  Let  their  vir- 
tues then,  excite  our  emulation,  their  success,  encourage  our 
efforts. - 

Are  you  a  christian  ?  much  remains  to  be  done,  to  make 
you  complete  in  all  the  will  of  God.  Are  3  ou  a  sinner — 
unpardoned  and  unsanctified — every  thing  is  to  be  done  to 
fit  you  for  their  society.  The  duty  we  are  enforcing  is  mo- 
mentous. Our  years  are  departing,  our  day  declines,  our 
life  will  soon  be  gone.  The  saints  call  on  us  from  heaven  ; 
the  prisoners  of  despair  from  the  abyss  ;  the  whole  congre- 
gation of  the  dead  from  their  graves  ;  and  wisdom  from  the 
oracles  of  God,  to  do  our  duty  now.  The  Redeemer,  in 
striking  coincidence  of  thought  and  language,  repeats  the 
monition — "  I  must  work,  while  it  is  day  :  the  night  cometh, 
in  which  no  man  can  work." 

But  to  some  of  us  only  a  fragment  of  life   remains  ;  and 


SERMON  VII.  87 

what  fervor  of  prayer,  what  strength  of  resolution,  what  fru- 
gality of  every  means  of  grace,  is  necessary  to  discipline 
and  mature  the  mind,  and  fit  the  spirit  for  a  place,  where 
nothing  enters  that  defileth  !  Have  we  a  christian  profession 
to  adorn — a  world  to  bless — a  heaven  to  gain — a  God  to 
glorify — and  can  we  sink  upon  the  lap  of  earthly  pleasure, 
and  slumber  in  inglorious  ease,  and  while  away  our  life  in 
frivolous  pursuits  ?  Have  we  to  change  the  whole  current  of 
our  way — to  eradicate  prejudices,  growing  from  our  youth — 
to  subdue  our  inclinations — to  dam,  or  drain,  a  flood  of 
iniquity — to  surmount  a  thousand  temptations,  and  over- 
come the  world — and  is  all  this  compatible  with  ordinary  in- 
dustry and  zeal  ?  The  spirits  in  yonder  heavens,  thought 
not  so.  They  were  ardent,  and  vigorous  in  application 
to  the  one  thing.  Grand  designs  were  never  formed, 
much  less  accomplished,  by  any  other  means.  Nor  of 
all  designs  formed,  by  man,  does  any  surpass  in  great- 
ness, that  of  a  sinner  to  obtain  the  approbation  of  God, 
and  the  society  of  the  blessed  in  heaven.  Feeble  efforts 
must  leave  these  objects  unattained.  Agonize  to  enter,  is  a 
direction,  in  neglect  of  which  a  man  perishes  at  the  gate. 
Not  an  exception  is  found  in  heaven.  We  have  the  same 
natures  that  they  possessed,  who  have  gone  before  us,  and 
now  inherit  the  promises  ;  and  living  in  the  same  world, 
must  exercise  the  same  self-denial  and  engagedness.  Could 
they  gain  access  to  God  only  through  the  mediator — neither 
can  we.  Were  the  graces  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  given  only  to 
their  fervent  and  upright  prayers — and  shall  we  obtain  them 
in  answer  to  supplications  of  any  other  character  ?  Did  they 
work  out  their  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling — and  shall 
that  infinite  good  be  bestowed  on  you,  without  solicitude, 
and  energetic  co-operation  with  hirn  who  wrought  in  them  ? 
Did  not  faith  without  works  save  them — and  shall  a  barren 
subscription  to  creeds    and  covenants,  be  accounted  right- 


88  SERMON  VII. 

eousness  to  you  ?  Did  they  reap  life  everlasting  only  by- 
sowing  to  the  spirit — and  shall  you  reap  the  same  harvest 
by  sowing  to  the  flesh  ?  Was  actual  perseverance  in  the  love 
of  God,  while  looking  only  to  the  mercy  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  indispensable  for  them — and  will  a  speculative  con- 
test for  this  practice,  be  enough  for  you  ?  If,  in  the  prosecu- 
tion of  their  Master's  work,  no  examples  diverted  them,  nor 
custom  deterred  them — shall  the  inconveniences  to  which 
fidelity  exposes  you,  cause  you  to  shrink  from  tha  duties  of 
your  station  ? 

But  here  is  a  man,  who  would  be  a  christian,  while  afraid 
of  overstepping  the  customs  of  the  world.     A  candidate  for 
heaven,  and  anxious   what  men  will  say  of  him;  and   how 
much  his  religion  will  cost  him  ;  and   hoping  to  inherit  the 
promises,  while  unwilling  to  expose  himself  to  ridicule  or  in- 
convenience !  And  was  it  thus,  that  Paul  and  his  associates, 
acquired    confidence   in    prospect  of  the  judgment   seat  of 
Christ  ?  Was  it    thus,  that   constellation  of  worthies,  who, 
while  reflecting  the  glory  of  God   from  the  record  of  their 
history,  brighten  also  the  heavens  with  their  lustre — was  it 
thus,  they  obtained  their  fixture  in  that  world  of  light  ?  Did 
they  not  rather,  at  the  command  of  God,  leave  country  and 
kindred,    dwell    in   tabernacles,  and    sojourn  in   a   strange 
land,    and    offer    up   their  children   and   their  own  lives  .? 
And  did  they  not  defy  the  wrath  of  kings,  and  esteem  the 
reproach  of  Christ  more  highly   than    all   the   honors    man 
could  give  ;  and  harbour  the  friends  of  God  at   the  hazard 
of  life  ;  and  take  patiently  the  lash,  and  joyfully   the   spoil- 
ing of  their  goods  ;  and  submit  to  imprisonment ;  and  brave 
the  billows  of  the  deep,  and  the  jaws  of  beasts,  and  the  fangs 
of  reptiles,  and  the  tortures  of  racks,  not  accepting  deliver- 
ance ?     Did   their  faith  fail  them,  for  threats,  and  cruel 
mockings,  and  cold,  and  hunger,  and  nakedness,  and   burn- 
ing, and  stoning,  and  sawing  asunder,  and  every  form  of 


SERMON  VII.  89 

bitter  death  ?  .Did  they  resist,  unto  blood,  the  false  maxims, 
and  unrighteousness,  and  ungodliness  of  men;  to  obtain  a 
good  report,  and  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  godliness  and  char- 
ity— and  do  any  of  us,  expect  to  steal  into  heaven,  with  a 
spirit  which  has  nothing  of  the  power  to  follow  thein  ? 

But  you  have  enemies,  and  difficulties,  and  temptations, 
besetting  you  on  your  weak  side — so  had  they.  You  have 
dangers  and  trials  peculiar  to  yourselves — so  had  they.  But 
they  overcame,  and  triumphed  gloriously,  by  looking  unto 
Jesus:  and  so  must  you.  If  like  them  you  would  live  and 
reign  with  Christ,  like  them,  you  must  be  willing  to  suffer 
with  him.  You  have  the  same  means,  and  motives,  and  en- 
couragements, which  they  had.  The  same  atonement,  on 
which  to  rest  your  justification,  the  same  teacher  to  guide 
you,  and  the  same  comforter  to  uphold  you  with  his 
promises,  and  purify  you  with  the  hopes  he  inspires  :  the 
same  tremendous  denunciations,  to  make  you  stand  in  awe 
and  not  sin  :  the  same  exhibitions  of  divine  goodness,  to  al- 
lure and  animate  you  :  the  same  fearful  kind  of  providences 
to  admonish,  and  chasten,  and  correct  you  :  the  same  deli- 
cious foretastes  to  constrain  you  ;  and  the  same  ground  for 
fortitude,  and  constancy,  and  expectation  of  help  in  time  of 
need.  What  lack  you  then,  that  they  enjoyed  ? '  You  have 
the  same  freedom  of  thought  and  action,  and  are  furnished 
with  equally  powerful  reasons,  and  plain  directions,  for  a 
life  of  devotedness  to  the  cause  and  kingdom  of  Jesus  Christ. 
The  covenant  of  grace  is  unaltered  :  the  terms  of  life  un- 
changed :  nor  is  the  path  to  glory  narrower,  than  when  they 
marched  through  it  without  fainting. 

What  is  our  apology  for  being  less  busy  than  they  ?  The 
moral  atmosphere  in  which  they  lived,  was  even  more  chil- 
ling than  ours.  They  met  opposition  from  without  more 
incessant,  and  violent ;  and  they  tell  us  of  fightings  ivithin, 
which  brought  forth  exclamations  such  as  indicated  a  bleed- 
12 


90  SERMON  VII. 

ing  heart.  Are  you  reproached  with  enthusiasm  for  your 
zeal  ?  They  were  charged  with  madness  from  the  fumes  of 
new  wine.  Must /you  be  charged  with  bigotry  or  fanati- 
cism, if  you  yield  not  the  faith  once  delivered  to  the  saints  ? 
They  were  said  to  be  mad,  and  setters  forth  of  strange  gods. 
Is  it,  in  the  opinion  of  some,  ignorance  and  illiberality  in 
you,  to  adhere  strictly  to  the  precepts  of  Christ  ?  In  them, 
such  adherence  was  worse  ;  and  to  serve  God  with  all  the 
heart,  and  all  the  strength,  is  no  more  preciseness,  and  be- 
ing righteous  over-much,  in  you,  than  it  was  obstinacy  in 
them,  and  disrespect  to  Caesar.  Yet  their  fidelity  was  main- 
tained, in  the  face  of  civil  authority,  and  at  the  expense  of 
martyrdom.  Yours  may  be  equally  well  maintained,  and 
not  a  single  statute,  nor  a  dog  of  state,  lift  up  his  tongue 
against  you.  The  charter  of  their  privileges  has  not  come 
down  to  us  abridged  ;  and  yet,  the  number  of  our  facilities 
for  improvement  under  it,  are  enlarged  ;  and  we  have,  ad- 
ded to  their  excitements,  the  light  and  force  of  their  exam- 
ple. However  great  the  glory  offered  them — however  en- 
nobling the  pursuits  enjoined  upon  them — however  many 
and  strong  the  hopes  and  fears  which  agitated  them — how- 
ever feelingly  enforced  their  obligations  to  Christ — the  glory 
to  which  we  are  invited  is  the  same ;  save  that  of  triumph- 
ing at  the  stake,  in  the  cauldron,  or  on  the  cross:  the  pur- 
suits enjoined  on  us  are  equally  honorable  ;  save,  perhaps, 
the  liberty  of  suffering  their  perils  among  the  heathen,  by 
robbers,  among  false  brethren,  in  a  wilderness  or  oh  the 
sea,  to  spread  abroad  the  name  and  religion  of  the  Saviour  : 
the  hopes  and  fears,  too,  which  agitate  us,  may  be  made 
equally  fruitful  and  valuable  in  their  influence;  and  the  ex- 
tent of  our  obligations,  in  all  respects,  is  as  clearly  and  va- 
riously taught. 

Who  then,  will  fail  to  follow  men  of  such  courage,  when 
he  beholds  them  passed  safely  through  ?     Who  can  give  way 


SERMON  VM.  9i 

10  despondency  or  sloth,  when  such  a  spirit  is,  of  itself, 
enough  to  prevent  his  entrance  into  their  inheritance  ?  The} 
reaped  not  by  faintness  in  seed  time,  nor  obtained  rest  by 
avoiding  exertion.  They  became  models  of  Christian  dili- 
gence— and  now,  where  are  they  ?  Alive  in  the  presence  of 
God  forevermore  :  from  the  state,  the  possibility,  the  appre- 
hension of  death,  they  are  already  freed  :  they  are  no  more 
connected  with  a  body  subject  to  disaster  and  decay.  They 
rest  in  a  city,  none  of  whose  inhabitants  say,  I  am  sick  :  in 
a  city,  where  sin  pollutes,  and  can  disturb  their  peace  no 
more  :  where  malice  and  envy  can  no  more  blast  the  good 
man's  name.  No  enemy  from  without  disturbs,  none  within 
interrupts  their  tranquillity.  The  veil  is  withdrawn  which 
hid  from  them  the  loving  God,  and  pure  in  heart,  they  see 
his  face  and  live.  Be  followers  of  them  in  Christian  dili- 
gence, and  soon  the  pangs  of  doubt,  and  of  distrust,  shall 
cease  to  exclude  you  from  their  perfect  joys.  Enduring 
patiently,  and  bearing  cheerfully,  and  forgiving  freely,  and 
laboring  zealously,  a  little  longer,  you  will  be  summoned  to 
the  same  banquet  of  unmingled  peace.  Once,  like  you,  these 
happy  spirits  dwelt  in  dust — in  a  world  of  vanity  and  vicis- 
situde ;  among  brethren  of  different  views  ;  with  a  church 
of  mingled  wheat  and  tares.  Their  eye  was  single  :  their 
work  was  performed  with  Christian  assiduity  ;  and  where 
are  they  ?  At  rest  in  heaven  ;  feasting  on  joys  unspeakable 
and  full  of  glory.  They  mourn  no  more  over  the  discord- 
ances and  failures  of  the  visible  family  of  God.  They  have 
labored  to  reconcile  men  to  each  other,  and  to  God  ;  and 
above  all  to  keep  themselves  pure,  partaking  not  in  other 
men's  sins,  and  their  works  have  followed  them.  They 
move  in  perfect  concert,  and  each,  with  all  his  modified,  ex- 
alted powers,  employs  those  powers  in  praise,  and  in  enjoy- 
ment. Would  you  be  there  ?  Let  your  work,  like  theirs,  be 
done  ;  and  as  you  approach  the  evening  horizon,  let   your 


9©  SERMON  VII.    , 

orb,  though  possibly  less  dazzling,  be  fullest  and  fairest  to 
every  beholder's  eye.  Read  their  histories,  behold  the  effects 
of  their  efforts,  and  recollect  that  you  are  indebted,  under 
God,  for  the  knowledge  you  possess  of  the  way  of  life,  to 
their  exertions.  Through  your  fidelity  to  Christ,  to  your 
children,  to  the  church,  and  to  mankind,  let  any  who  are  to 
succeed  you,  owe  the  same  blessed  privilege  to  you.  From 
every  obstacle  you  meet  in  following  their  steps,  look  up- 
ward on  them,  and  through  them,  to  Christ,  and  surmount 
them  all. 

Are  you  a  Christian  ?  Remember  heaven  is  your  home  ■ 
and  keep  your  affections  set  on  things  above.  There  are 
your  best  friends — the  Angels  who  minister  to  you  ;  your 
pious  relatives,  who,  living  and  dying,  blessed  you  ;  your 
Saviour  who  intercedes  for  you  ;  your  Father  and  your  God  : 
and  there  be  your  conversation,  and  there  your  hopes  and 
treasures.  Then,  as  often  as  duty  calls  you  down  from  the 
mount,  you  will  return  cheered  and  brightened,  like  the  face 
of  Moses  when  he  had  talked  with  God  ;  or  like  Stephen's, 
which,  while  looking  stedfastly  to  the  heavens,  was  seen,  as 
it  had  been  the  face  of  an  Angel. 

Aged  Brethren  !  may  I  be  allowed  to  hope,  that  the  duty* 
of  Christian  diligence,  has  not  been  exhibited,  and  enforced 
in  your  hearing,  in  vain  !  For  y  ju,  the  living  will  labor  but 
a  little  longer.  A  new  world  will  soon  surround  you.  You 
will  not  be  suffered  to  abide  at  this  altar,  by  reason  of  death. 
Here,  beyond  that  period,  no  prayers  can  be  offered  for  .you, 
bo  service  performed  by  you  ;  and,  as  of  another  year,*  so 
of  your  connection  with  this  world,  it  will  be  said — itis  gone 
by  forever.  Will  you  not  "nil,  be  followers  of  them  who  in- 
herit the  promises  ;  that  when  the  grave  which  waits  for  you 
shall  be  opened,  and  the  dust  return  to  dust  again,  you  may 

*  This  discourse  was  delivered  on  the  last  Sabbath  of  the  year  1820. 


SERMON  VII.  93 

be  added  to  the  models  we  have  been  contemplating,  and 
numbered,  in  our  hope,  among  the  spirits  of  the  just  ?  If  you 
know  not  the  alternative,  I  would  not  spread  a  mantle  over 
its  horrors. 

Why  then,  by  a  needless  silence,  should  I  deceive  those, 
who  do  not  rank  themselves  among  the  Fathers  ?  Truth  calls 
them  aged,  who  are  no  nearer  heaven  for  having  passed  the 
meridian  of  life  ;  and  who  are  diligent,  only  in  the  concerns 
of  the  present  state,  and  live  without  hope,  and  without  God 
in  the  world.  They  make  haste  to  the  land  of  silence,  nay 
they  are  already  dead,  who  suffer  the  cares  of  this  life  to 
choke  the  word,  and  render  all  the  admonitions  of  their  God 
unfruitful.  Their  murdered  hours  will  soon  be  avenged, 
when,  stretched  on  the  bed  of  death,  they  find  no  place  for 
Christian  diligence.  There  you  may  see  the  worldling,  who 
has  not  one  to  give,  offering  ten  thousand  worlds,  for  a  res- 
pite long  enough  to  exemplify  such  diligence,  and  to  secure 
its  rewards.  But  had  you  all  these  worlds,  my  brother,  they 
would  not  redeem  one  hour  from  death,  nor  yield  to  God  a 
ransom  for  those  you  now  misspend.  Will  you  not  now 
avail  yourself  of  this  admonition  and  become  a  follower  of 
them,  who,  through  faith  and  patience,  inherit  the  promises? 
JNor  let  a  consciousness  of  past  neglect  discourage,but  stim- 
ulate the  mind,  as  the  work  has  diminished  nothing  in  its 
vastness  or  importance  ;  and  the  time  of  service  is  of  shorter 
duration. 

Nor,  in  the  application  of  this  subject,  should  the  young 
be  neglected  :  for  in  the  morning  of  life,  no  less  than  in 
palsied  age,  we  are  obliged,  by  him  who  gives  law  to  all,  to 
make  a  proper  use  of  time.  Yet  all  the  pages  of  life,  which 
record  no  proofs,  or  fruits,  of  christian  diligence,  are  either 
blank  or  blot.  Art  thou  secure,  young  man  !  while  not  a 
follower  of  them,  by  whose  lives  this  duty  has  been  enforced  ? 
Hast  thou  another,  and  a  better  standard  ?  They  who  have 


94  SERMON  VII. 

long  passed  your  period  of  life,  in  inaction  and  spiritual 
sloth,  can  tell  you,  what  embittered  recollections  this  fact 
has  brought  on  them.  They  can  tell  you,  that  there  is  but 
one  spring,  and  that  this,  if  squandered,  is  usually  followed 
with  self-reproach,  instead  of  the  joys  of  the  diligent  in  har- 
vest. Could  I  find  a  consideration,  more  worthy  than  has 
been  already  set  before  you,  to  enforce  on  you  this  duty,  I 
should  owe  it  to  your  age;  because,  commenced  at  this 
period,  and  prosecuted  to  old  age,  christian  diligence  prom- 
ises both  the  greater  honor  to  Gor>,  the  greater  good  to  man- 
kind, and  to  yourself,  the  greatest  reward.  For,,  consider 
that  diligence  will  accomplish  no  less  in  Christ's  kingdom, 
than  in  any  other  :  and  yet,  in  every  other,  what  has  it  not 
done  ?  How  many  deserts  has  it  turned  into  fruitful  fields  ; 
and  wildernesses,  into  flourishing  cities,  and  seats  of  civiliza- 
tion and  science  !  It  has  brought  to  light  those  physical 
truths,  which  nature  hid  among  her  secrets,  to  teach  the 
world  how  worthless  genius  is,  without  industry.  It  has 
raised  the  understanding  to  the  apprehension  of  those  sub- 
lime  moral  truths,  .and  relations  of  truth,  which  indolence 
would  have  left  to  rank  forever  among  the  impenetrable  and 
unintelligible  mysteries  of  fate.  Its  powers  have  the  ac- 
knowledgement of  high  distinction,  in  the  reduction  of  all 
sciences,  to  form,  order  and  system  :  in  the  developement  of 
schemes  of  the  highest  temporal  utility,  and  sources  of  pros- 
perity, to  the  nations  which  are  to  be  born.  It  has  enlight- 
ened the  path  of  worlds,  at  an  immense  distance  from  our 
own  ;  and  formed  the  ascending  steps,  of  the  benighted 
mind,  to  all  the  natural  perfections  of  the  Deity.  It  has 
united  distant  continents  better  than  armies,  it  has  subdued 
kingdoms,  and  civilized  many  portions  of  the  world.  What, 
then,  may  it  not  do,  under  the  guidance  of  christian  motives, 
and  governed  by  the  christian's  temper  ?  What  an  influence 
may  it  not  exert  on  the  moral  world,  in  its  reduction  to  or- 


SERMON  VII.  95 

tier,  to  virtue,  and  to  God  ?  Co-operating  with  him,  what 
excellence,  what  command,  what  glory  is  not  within  the 
comprehension  of  its  hand  ?  It  has  already,  thus  employed, 
beat  down  the  bulwarks  of  idolatry  and  superstition,  and  of 
every  practised  sin,  in  many  countries.  It  is  destined  ulti- 
mately, to  fill  the  earth  with  the  knowledge  of  God,  and  add 
to  intellectual,  and  every  other  imaginable  greatness,  the 
wisdom  and  felicity  of  the  heavens. 

While  the  children  of  this  world  labor  so  industriously, 
to  obtain  only  what  shall  perish,  will  it  not  be  your  glory, 
to  pursue  with  equal  ardor  and  constanc}^,  the  crown  which 
fadeth  not  away  ?  Influenced  by  a  consideration,  which 
unites  the  dearest  interests  of  two  worlds,  shall  it  not  be 
}?ours,  to  take  hold  on  the  promise  of  the  life  which  now  is, 
and  of  that  which  is  to  come  ;  and  thus  to  verify,  the  sayings 
of  that  book,  whence  we  derive  all  our  lessons  of  wisdom  ; 
and  see,  if,  in  obeying  and  serving  God,  man  may  not  spend 
his  days  in  prosperity,  and  his  years  in  pleasure  ;  and  if  he 
do  not  find  a  consummation  of  all  human  greatness  and 
glory,  the  moment  he  steps  across  the  dividing  line.  Here, 
the  munificence  of  God,  having  secured  to  christian  dili- 
gence, by  constitution  and  promise,  all  to  which  wisdom  and 
grace  could  prompt  an  Almighty  Father's  heart,  must  have 
an  end.  And  if  all  this  shall  fail  to  move  you,  you  are  lost. 
O !  who  can  comprehend  the  full  meaning  of  that  expres- 
sion— lost  ?  Who  by  searching  can  find  it  out  unto  perfec- 
tion ?  It  is  deep  as  hell — its  measure  is  eternity.  Here 
stopped  the  wisdom  of  Solomon  :  the  wisdom  of  a  greater 
than  Solomon,  affected  not  to  go  beyond  ;  and  who  must 
not  despair,  when  baffled  at  the  point,  where  Christ's  argu- 
ments and  compassions  together  end  ! 


SERMON  VIII, 


?  MODESTY    OF    APPAREL. 


1  Timothy,  ii.  8,  9. 


I  will — that   women   adorn  themselves   in  modest  upparel,   with 
shame-facedness  and  sobriety. 

JL  HESE  are  the  words  of  an  Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  di- 
rected to  an  evangelist  residing  at  Ephesus — at  that  time  a 
principal  city  of  Asia.  Although  this  exhortation  might 
have  been  penned  for  the  benefit,  ultimately,  of  future  ages  ; 
it  had,  doubtless,  a  particular  reference,  and  was  designed  to 
be  applied,  to  the  existing  state  of  that  polite  city.  A  de- 
gree of  effeminacy,  has  ever  characterized  the  people  of  that 
nation.  The  power  of  custom,  endangered  the  purity  of  the 
professors  of  godliness  :  and  in  the  early  age  of  the  church, 
it  was  of  peculiar  importance  that  its  members  should  be 
distinguished  from  its  enemies,  as  well  by  propriety  of  exter- 


*  Perhaps  it  is  due  to  the  sex  to  say,  that  the  part  of  this  discourse  which 
relates  to  immodest  apparel,  is  not  so  applicable  to  th&-  present  mode,  as 
to  that  which  prevailed  when  it  was  written.  But  when  we  consider  the 
tyranny  of  fashion,  and  the  peculiar  reluctance  of  the  female  world  to  hear 
on  this  subject,  it  becomes  doubly  important,  that  such  admonition  should 
be  read.     The  closet  may  convey  the  censure,  and  spare  the  blush. 


SERMON  VIII.  97 

nal  appearances  as  by  the  superiority  of  their  principles. 
So  particular  and  so  extensive  are  the  rules  of  Christianity, 
that  they  extend,  as  we  are  here  taught,  and  as  we  are  often 
reminded,  to  the  manners,  the  deportment,  and  even  the 
dress  of  its  professors.  And  from  the  sex  spoken  of  in  the 
text,  we  may  conclude  that  the  same  exhortations  are  appli- 
cable to  them,  in  this,  as  well  as  in  past  ages.  Indeed,  it  is 
supposed,  that  the  fashionable  moderns  have  as  much  ex- 
celled their  ancestors,  in  frivolity  and  indelicacy,  as  in  their 
advantages  for  surpassing  them  in  sobriety  and  modesty. 

With  respect  to  the  particular  subject  under  consideration, 
toe  have,  indeed,  never  witnessed  a  period,  so  distinguished 
for  vanity  and  immodesty  as  the  present.  That  sex,  to  whom 
we  have  been  accustomed  to  look  for  every  thing  that  is  re- 
fined in  sentiment  and  manners,  by  the  introduction  of  prac- 
tices which  the  Apostle,  and  even  nature,  forbids,  have  car- 
ried us  back  to  the  age  in  which  he  lived.  The  softening 
and  purifying  tendency  of  Christianity,  seems  now  no  longer 
observable  ;  and  we  are  called  upon,  as  were  Christ  and 
his  Apostles,  to  make  such  animadversions  on  fashionable 
vices,  as  seem  scarcely  becoming  the  sanctity  of  the  house 
of  God.  1  have  chosen  this  season,  (evening)  for  such  a 
purpose,  out  of  tenderness  to  the  conscious  delicacy  of  those, 
who  blush  for  them  who  discover  their  want  of  modesty, 
even  in  this  sacred  place. 

Attend  then  with  seriousness  to  the  solemn  demand  of  the 
Apostle  :  "I  will — that  women  adorn  themselves  in  modest 
apparel,  with  shame-facedness  and  sobriety." 

I.  I  shall  consider,  in  the  first  place,  the  nature  and  ex- 
tent of  this  injunction,  as  it  relates  to  apparel  :  and  this  we 
shall  find  to  embrace  the  ideas,  both  of  modesty  and  orna- 
ment. 

1.     With  respect  to  the  first,  it  may  be  difficult  to  settle 
with  precision  the  meaning  of  the  phrase.     Modest  apparel 
13 


93  SERMON  VIII. 

is  a  vague  phrase,  when  unconnected  with  the  rules  of 
Christianity — ever  varying,  in  its  import,  with  public  opin- 
ion, which  is  gradually  formed  by  the  customs  of  the  world, 
What  in  one  age,  has  been  deemed  indelicate  and  immodest; 
has,  in  another,  been  considered  decorous  and  becoming. 
And  that  dress,  which,  at  one  time,  in  the  same  nation,  has 
been  thought  studied  singularity,  and  an  affectation  of  mod- 
esty ;  has,  at  another,  been  accounted  barely  decent.  Still, 
as  has  been  well  observed,  "  in  this  instance,  as  in  all  others 
where  the  passions  are  concerned,  the  strictest  casuist,  will 
generally  be  found  the  safest."  The  public  regulations 
with  respect  to  dress,  in  the  early  stages  of  society  in  this 
country,  and  their  effects,  clearly  evince  the  absolute  impos- 
sibility of  making  sufficient  legal  provisions  for  maintaining 
propriety.  The  regulations  referred  to,  were  marked  with 
a  severity  bordering  on  the  ludicrous — with  restrictions  un- 
doubtedly too  great :  but  the  almost  unrestrained  indul- 
gence, which  has  since  prevailed,  has  clearly  passed  the  true 
mean. 

The  modesty  of  apparel,  therefore,  which  the  Apostle  en- 
joins, must  be  determined  by  the  nature  of  christian  moral- 
ity. Whatever  is  inconsistent  with  purity  of  heart — what- 
ever tends,  on  the  first  experiment,  to  excite  a  blush  in  her 
who  puts  on  the  habit,  or  in  those  who  first  behold  her  in 
such  a  garb,  must  be  considered  as  an  infraction  of  the  law 
of  chastity.  If  we  admit  the  justness  of  Christ's  morality, 
we  cannot  surely  doubt,  whether  the  latitude  on  this*  sub- 
ject, at  present  given — not  by  public  opinion,  but  by  the 
mistresses  of  the  fashionable  world — be  consistent  with  the 
laws  of  Christianity.  Judging  from  the  reigning  mode,  one 
would  suppose  that  instead  of  a  fallen,  guilty  state,  women 
imagined  that  they,  and  the  rest  of  the  worlcf,  were  in  that 
of  paradisiacal  innocence.     But  surely  if  their  own  feelings 


SERMON  VIII.  99 

are  insufficient  for  this  purpose,  a  consideration  of  the  con- 
dition of  our  race  should  remind  them  of  their  error. 

She  who  has  any  thing  of  the  spirit  of  religion,  needs  not 
political  statutes  to  confine  her  ;  but  will  be  always  vigilant, 
to  recede  from  the  borders  of  immodesty,  rather  than  in  dan- 
ger of  overstepping  them.  Let  those  who  have  not  the 
spirit  of  this  religion,  look,  for  the  rules  which  should  regu- 
late their  conduct,  to  the  examples  of  those  who  have  ;  for 
the  latter,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  are  not  involved  in  the  gen- 
eral disgrace.  In  such  examples,  it  is  hoped  they  will  find 
specimens  of  that  modesty  of  apparel,  of  which  the  Apostle 
speaks,  as  opposed  to  indecency  :  although  it  must  be  ac- 
knowledged, painful  as  it  is,  that  as  it  respects  modesty 
when  opposed  to  ornament,  they  will  find  it  safer  to  apply 
to  the  evangelical  Prophet  than  to  them. 

To  frame  rules,  for  the  direction  of  women  on  such  an 
article,  was  not  the  province  of  the  Apostle,  but  of  mothers 
in  Zion.  Paul  therefore,  has  contented  himself  with  a  de- 
mand of  modesty,  in  this  particular,  and  left  it  to  the  piety 
and  common  sense  of  mothers,  to  do  the  rest.  We  will, 
therefore,  only  consider  the  consequences  of  a  general  ne- 
glect of  the  injunction  in  the  text. 

One  of  the  most  deplorable  of  these  is,  that  the  barriers 
of  virtue  are  broken  down.  Society  becomes  dissolute — 
virtue  loses  its  charms — and  the  fairest  portion  of  creation, 
degenerate  into  mere  animal  existences.  Immodesty  of  ap- 
parel, leads  directly  to  indelicacy  of  sentiment ;  and  a  cor- 
ruption of  sentiment,  to  incontinence  of  life.  These,  believe 
me,  are  not  the  figments  of  a  disordered  brain,  but  they  are 
awful  truths  ;  and  though  they  are  plain  truths,  you  cannot 
but  acknowledge  that  a  faithful  admonition,  at  the  expense 
of  your  pride,  is  better  than  the  most  ingenious  adulation  or 
deception,  at  the  expense  of  your  virtue.  If  such  admoni- 
tion be  given  with  candour,  and  accompanied  with    tender- 


100  SERMON  VIII. 

Hess,  it  is  the  best  proof  of  friendship.  Indulge  not  the  idea, 
then,  too  commonly  embraced,  that  the  Apostle  Paul  was  an 
enemy  to  your  sex.  The  superficial  reader  has  ever  consid- 
ered him  such  :  but  understand  him  thoroughly,  and  you 
will  be  convinced  he  is  their  sincere  friend  ;  and  that  he  has 
ever  consulted,  in  his  directions  to  them,  the  interest,  the  dig- 
nity, and  the  happiness  of  the  sex. 

She  who,  by  immodest  apparel,  exposes  herself  to  the 
view  of  the  world,  cannot  be  said  to  reverence  herself;  and 
she  who  does  not  reverence  herself,  must  not  claim  even 
civility,  and  much  less  can  she  expect  to  receive  respect, 
from  others.  Those  who  do  thus  expose  themselves,  great- 
ly mistake  the  means  which  should  be  employed  to  attain 
their  object.  An  outside,  can  never  captivate  the  sensible 
and  discerning  part  of  the  world  ;  and  a  custom  which  bor- 
ders on  indelicacy,  will  never  fail  to  excite  disgust,  in  those 
who  have  any  principle  of  virtue  within.  Such  a  display, 
therefore,  defeats  their  own  designs. 

But  consider  next,  another  consequence  of  this  fashionable 
vice,  which  affects  you  in  another  point  of  view.  Consider, 
that,  in  our  own  age,  thousands  have  anticipated  death,  and 
gone  down  to  the  grave,  their  own  executioners,  and  the 
monuments  of  their  indiscretion  and  their  sin.  How  often, 
within  the  sphere  of  our  own  observation,  has  disease  and 
death  been  suffered  to  enter  the  frail  and  fender  bodies  of 
your  sex,  through  too  thin  a  habit ;  and  the  consequences 
are  awful,  because  they  are  eternal. 

Finally — consider,  that  although  the  indelicacy  of  those 
who  are  known  to  be  wanton,  produces  quite  an  opposite  ef- 
fect to  that  of  the  more  refined,  yet  that  under  certain  cir- 
cumstances, and  in  certain  cases,  even  the  mind  of  the  chris- 
tian cannot  fail  of  receiving,  for  a  moment,  such  impressions 
as  are  accounted  sinful,  and  as  are  chargeable  on  you.  And 
are  you  so  spotless,  as  to  take  it  upon  you  to  account  for  the 


SERMON  VIII.  101 

sin  of  others?  Besides,  while  disobeying  the  injunction  in 
the  text,  you  are  employing1,  not  indeed  the  words  of  the  wife 
of  Potiphar  to  Joseph,  but  a  language  of  the  same  import- 
By  such  indelicacy,  you  seize  the  young  and  the  unwary  by 
the  mantle,  and  lead  them  to  devices  and  to  intrigues,  which 
take  hold  on  hell.  You  expose  yourselves  and  others  to 
snares,  of  which,  if  innocent,  you  little  dream;  and  which, 
if  guilty,  will  cost  you  the  loss  of  character  here,  and  the 
eternal  loss  of  happiness  hereafter. 

II.     We  are  to  consider,  secondly,   that   modesty  of  ap- 
parel which  is  opposed  to  ornament. 

As  a  class  of  society,  there  is  none  who  have  bestowed  so 
much  attention  on  the  decoration  of  the  body,  as  the  fe- 
male sex.  The  Prophet,  in  the  illustration  of  a  certain 
truth,  has  recognized  the  justice  of  the  sentiment,  that  in  all 
civilized  nations,  women  have  been  fond,  to  excess,  of  exter- 
nal embellishments — "Can  a  maid,"  says  he,  "forget  her 
ornaments,  or  a  bride  her  attire  ?"  Whether  this  fondness 
for  ornament  is  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  natural  constitu- 
tion of  their  minds,  or  is  the  result  of  the  partiality  of  the 
other  sex  to  such  as  arrayed  themselves  in  the  most  splendid 
attire,  is  not  made  a  question  by  the  inspired  writers,  neither 
is  it  of  importance  for  us  to  decide.  Certain  it  is,  that  in 
every  civilized,  and  in  some  barbarous  nations,  it  has  been 
found  to  be  a  fact.  But,  with  respect  to  this  subject,  we 
may  rejoice  in  the  truth,  that  a  simplicity  has  prevailed  in 
our  age,  unknown  to  the  inhabitants  of  that  period  in  which 
the  Prophet  wrote.  Still,  it  is  to  be  confessed,  there  remains 
room  for  improvement.  Though  the  ornaments  of  the  pres- 
ent age  are  neither  so  profuse,  nor  ridiculous,  as  those  of  a 
former,  they  are  still  chargeable  with  immodesty,  or  vanity, 
in  their  apparel,  who  suffer  themselves  to  be  directed  in  their 
choice  of  them,  by  the  fancies  of  those  who  give  law  to  the 
female  world.     The  manner  and  minuteness,  with  which  the 


102  SERMON  VIII. 

inspired  penman  has  treated  this  subject,  while  it  evinces  its 
great  importance,  leaves  no  ground  of  excuse  for  those,  who 
waste  their  valuable  years,  and  estates,  upon  the  decorations 
of  the  body.  Some  degree  of  thought,  as  well  as  care,  in 
this  particular,  is  not  only  allowable,  but  necessary.  Still  it 
is,  and  will  ever  remain,  beneath  the  dignity  of  the  female 
character — beneath  the  employment  of  an  immortal  mind — 
to  be  solicitous,  wherewith  the  body  shall  be  clothed.  An 
anxiety  on  this  subject,  if  discovered,  lessens  instantly,  in  the 
estimation  of  the  world,  the  value  of  the  woman.  To  her, 
therefore,  whose  object  it  is  (and  it  certainly  should  be  the 
object  of  all)  to  honor  God,  by  becoming  useful  to  man- 
kind ;  and,  by  the  purity  of  her  example,  to  exert  an  exten- 
sive influence  around  her,  dress  will  ever  be  a  subordinate 
subject.  The  care  of  it,  and  the  thoughts  relating  to  it,  will 
ever  be  incidental  rather  than  studied.  The  care  of  the 
woman  who  reverences  herself,  will  be  to  command  esteem, 
rather  by  the  richness  of  the  furniture  within,  than  the  gay 
and  gaudy  profusion  of  that  without. 

But  the  attention  and  admiration  of  men,  constitutes,  with 
a  virtuous  woman,  but  a  secondary  consideration.  She 
feels  that  she  is  immortal,  and  acts  for  eternity.  She  listens 
to  the  warning  voice  of  God,  not  to  the  lying  applauses  of 
men.  She  knows  that  spiritual  improvement,  as  well  as 
domestic  usefulness  and  peace,  are  hardly  compatible  with 
great  attainments  in  the  art  of  dress.  She  has  the  magna- 
nimity to  declare  her  feelings  by  her  conduct ;  and  to  'show 
others  that  she  feels,  that  to  improve,  refine,  and  bless, 
not  to  dazzle  and  deceive,  is  the  end  of  female  existence. 
She  gives  the  lie  to  the  practical  declaration  of  the  silly,  the 
vain,  and  the  fluttering  of  her  sex,  that  woman  has  only  aa 
animal  nature  ;  and  evinces  that  she  is  endowed  with  exalt- 
ed powers. 

The  frequent  examination  of  the  person;  adds  new  preven- 


SERMON  VIII.  103 

tives  to  the  examination  of  the  heart :  and  the  mind  is  gen- 
erally found  empty,  where  the  person  is  profusely  ornament- 
ed. But  they  greatly  mistake  the  character  of  those  of  our 
sex  who  are  worthy  their  regard,  who  imagine  their  gar- 
rison, though  weak,  to  be  in  little  danger,  where  the  out- 
works are  complete.  No  external  trappings,  whether  natural 
or  acquired,  can  ever  atone  for  an  uncultivated  mind,  or  a 
base  heart.  And  that  mind  will  assuredly  be  ignorant,  and 
that  heart  unacquainted  with  true  virtue,  which  studies  more 
to  adorn  the  person  with  elegance,  than  to  embellish  and 
improve  the  soul  with  the  ornaments  of  religious  knowledge 
and  the  christian  graces.  Toilet  devotion,  and  religious  af- 
fections, cannot  exist  together.  Both  the  kind,  and  degree 
of  employment,  necessary  to  the  acquisition  of  the  friend- 
ship and  admiration  of  the  world,  are  insuperable  barriers 
to  the  obtaining  of  the  approbation  and  favor  of  God.  The 
embellishments  of  the  person,  without  religion,  may  ensure 
the  One  ;  only  those  of  the  soul  formed  by  virtue,  can  se- 
cure those  of  the  other.  She  who  had  never  a  thought  of 
God,  or  of  eternity,  may  gain  her  object  by  the  former;  but 
she  who  has  not  devoted  much  thought  to  both,  can  never 
obtain  the  latter.  The  very  taste  for  gaiety  and  show,  im- 
plies either  ignorance  of,  or  indifference  to,  the  precepts  of 
the  Gospel ;  and  the  ambition  and  attempt  to  please,  by 
such  unhallowed  and  insignificant  means,  discovers  an  emp- 
tiness of  soul,  in  her  who  seeks  to  captivate,  and  in  those 
who  are  thus  easily  caught,  pardonable  only  in  children. 

The  subject  admits  of  the  keenest  irony,  and  of  every 
other  species  of  wit ;  but  it  is  of  too  great  importance  to  be 
treated  even  ludicrously.  A  subject,  which,  in  the  present 
view  of  it,  is  intimately  connected  with  eternity,  is  not  to  be 
sported  with,  and  thus  placed  on  a  level  with  those  which 
the  Deity  is  supposed  not  to  regard.  A  course  of  conduct 
which  is  tending,  in  its  consequences,  to  the  destruction  of  a 

i 


104  SERMON  VIII. 

rational,  intelligent,  and  immortal  soul,  requires  the  caution 
produced  by  a  view  of  the  sanctions  of  God's  law,  rather 
than  the  lash  of  ridicule.  Those  whose  practices  are  incon- 
sistent with  the  laws  of  Christianity,  require  the  interposition 
of  the  grace  of  God,  to  change  their  dispositions  ;  and  the 
means  used  to  effect  this  must  be  holy.  Satire  may  irritate 
the  passions,  but  does  not,  ordinarily,  operate  as  a  means  of 
changing  the  temper.  If  it  is  imagined,  that  this  is  giving 
an  undue  importance  to  the  subject,  turn  to  the  expressions 
of  God  himself,  and  you  will  discover  in  what  light  he  views 
the  character,  the  disposition,  and  the  conduct  of  those,  of 
whom  we  have  been  treating.  "  Moreover,  the  Lord  saith, 
because  the  daughters  of  Zion  are  haughty,  and  walk  with 
stretched  forth  necks,  and  wanton  eyes,  walking  and  mincing 
as  they  go,  and  making  a  tinkling  with  their  feet;  there- 
fore, the  Lord  will  smite  the  crown  of  the  head  of  the  daugh- 
ters of  Zion,  and  expose  them.  The  Lord  will  take  away 
the  bravery  of  their  tinkling  ornaments,  their  cauls,  and 
their  round  tires,  like  the  moon  ;  the  chains,  and  the  brace- 
lets, and  the  mufflers.;  the  bonnets,  and  the  ornaments  of  the 
legs,  and  the  head-bands,  and  the  tablets,  and  the  ear  rings  ; 
the  rings  and  nose  jewels,  the  changeable  suits  of  apparel', 
and  the  wimples,  and  the  crisping  pins,  the  glasses,  and  the 
line  linen,  and  the  hoods,  and  the  veils  :  and  it  shall  come 
to  pass,  that  instead  of  a  girdle,  there  shall  be  a  rent ;  and 
instead  of  well  set  hair,  baldness;  and  instead  of  a  stomacher, 
a  girding  of  sackcloth  ;  and  burning,  instead  of  beauty  : 
and  the  gates  of  Zion  shall  lament  and  mourn ;  and  she, 
being  desolate,  shall  sit  upon  the  ground."  Such  are  the 
judgments,  consequent  upon  what  are  commonly  esteemed 
venial  indiscretions. 

How  the  social  virtues  can  be  maintained  in  exercise,  in 
consistency  with  such  attention  to  dress,  as  the  lav  s  of  cus- 
tom impose,  they  perhaps  can  best  determine  who  waste  their 


SERMON  VIII.  10S 

time  in  devising  the  form,  and  executing  their  devices,  of 
their  apparel  and  its  appendages — who  exhaust  their  trea- 
sures, in  providing  ornaments  and  chains  of  gold — who 
turn  the  stream  of  beneficence  upon  themselves — who  leave 
frugality  to  the  vulgar,  and  are  profuse,  only  in  those  chari- 
ties, which  begin  and  end  at  home.  Pride,  vanity,  and  self- 
conceit,  are  almost  invariably  found  attached  to  those  frivolous 
characters,  who  are  emulous  to  excel  in  the  richness  or 
gaiety  of  their  apparel :  and  should  they  not  be  found  so 
conspicuous  in  these,  they  lay  a  foundation  for  envy,  malig- 
nity, and  censoriousness,  in  every  rival.  Even  the  appear- 
ance of  humility,  in  such,  excites  suspicions  of  its  reality. 
The  attention  which  they  usually  command  from  the 
weak  and  the  frivolous,  is  apt  to  betray  them  into  an  ima- 
gination of  some  real  excellence,  which  they  never  possessed ; 
and  this  fancied  excellence,  whatever  it  may  be,  atones,  in 
their  view,  for  every  defect,  and  forever  prevents  an  atten- 
tion to  those  important  acquisitions,  without  which,  favor  is 
deceitful,  and  beauty  vain.  Such  persons  forget,  that  their 
beauty  shall  soon  be  consumed,  and  their  beautiful  garments 
employed  to  cover  a  mass  of  corruption.  Whence  then  is 
all  their  pride  and  boasting?  To  corruption,  each  of  you 
must  soon  say — Thou  art  my  father;  and  to. the  worm, 
thou  art  my  mother  and  my  sister — Value  not,  then,  the 
robes  of  ostentation,  and  the  trappings  of  vanity.  Remem- 
ber that  the  moth,  which  shall  feed  on  that  delicate  flesh,  will 
soon  arise,  and  flutter  in  a  richness,  a  sumptuousness  of  dress, 
with  which  you,  in  all  your  glory,  were  never  arrayed. 

Mothers  !  you  have  vowed  to  bring  up  your  flock,  in  the 
nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord.  It  is  your  province,  to 
regulate  the  manners  and  the  dresses  of  your  children  :  and 
let  not  an  over-weening,  an  ill-placed  affection,  suffer  you 
to  look  with  an  eye  of  complacency,  on  the  indelicacy,  or  the 
extravagance  of  your  children.  Daughters !  you  blushed. 
14 


100  SERMON  VIII. 

in  conscious  guilt,  when  you  first  assumed  the  half-formed 
garments  of  Eden.  Restore  the  garb  of  delicacy  and  mod- 
esty to  your  forms,  and  let  the  coloring  of  virtue  return. 
Banish  that  extravagance  in  your  apparel,  that  profusion  of 
ornament,  and  that  gaudy  attire,  which  better  become  the 
butterfly  than  the  woman  ;  and  which  are  ever  the  marks  of  a 
weak,  a  vain,  or  an  empty  mind.  Adorn  yourselves  in 
modest  apparel,  with  shame-facedness  and  sobriety  ;  not  wijh 
broidered  hair,  or  gold,  or  pearls,  or  costly  array,  but  with 
the  ornament  of  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  which,  in  the  sight 
both  of  God  and  man,  is  of  great  price. 

II.  It  remains,  in  the  second  place,  that  we  attend  to  the 
virtue  of  modesty  itself,  as  existing  in  the  heart,  and  ex- 
pressed in  the  language  of  the  Apostle,  by  "  shame-faced- 
ness." "  I  will,  that  women  adorn  themselves  in  modest 
apparel,  with  shame-facedness  and  sobriety."  We  should 
lose  much  of  the  force  of  this  exhortation,  were  we  to  con- 
sider it  as  extending  only  to  the  laws  of  decorum.  It  reaches 
to  the  heart.  True  modesty  is  a  gem  of  inestimable  value  ; 
and  in  a  woman,  indispensable.  In  the  language  of  a  heath- 
en writer,  we  have  in  few  words,  what,  if  written  after, 
might  justly  be  considered  as  a  paraphrase  of  this  part  of  * 
our  text — "  'Tis  not  gold,  emeralds,  nor  purple,  but  modesty, 
gravity,  and  decent  deportment,  that  can  truly  adorn  a 
woman."  Modesty  is  an  ornament  which  nothing  can  pur- 
chase ;  producing  a  delicate  reserve,  equally  distant  from 
prudery  and  wanton  boldness — inducing  a  demeanor  singu- 
larly discouraging  to  the  insolent  attempts  of  the  vain,  the 
wanton,  and  the  familiar  guest.  It  is  the  almost  necessary 
result  of  innocence  and  worth..  It  is  at  once,  the  test  and 
the  guardian  of  virtue.  The  various  decencies,  whether  of 
dress  or  of  manners,  which  flow  from  a  heart  possessed  of  it, 
are  rather  its  own  genuine  effect,  than  the  results  of  educa- 
tion.    By  strict  observance  of  the  rules  of  art,  its  counter- 


SERMON  VITI.  1 01 

feit  may  be  obtained  ;  but  the  reality,  is,  in  every  instance, 
the  gift  of  God.  Impurity  of  heart,  is  utterly  inconsistent 
with  the  possession  of  this  virtue  ;  although  such  impurity 
is  often  disguised  with  its  semblance. 

There  is  not,  in  the  rational  world,  an  object  more  dis- 
gustful, than  a  wanton,  or  an  impudent  woman  :  nor,  on  the 
other  hand,  one  more  pleasing,  than  she  who  is  truly 
modest  from  a  principle  of  piety.  And  so  prevalent  is  this 
sentiment,  and  so  sensible  of  its  truth  are  the  abandoned  of 
the  sex,  that  the  world  is  filled  with  counterfeits.  But  how 
immense  is  the  difference,  between  the  downcast  eye  of 
conscious  impurity,  and  the  retiring  modesty  of  virtue  ! 
From  the  one,  we  turn  with  emotions  of  indignant  pity  : 
from  the  other,  we  recede  with  a  painful  fear  of  wounding  a 
child  of  God.  There  is  a  "  shame-facedness" — an  awkward 
bashfulness — which  can  never  speak,  or  speak  without 
trembling.  This,  though  it  may  consist  with,  should  never 
be  taken  for,  modesty  itself;  for  it  most  commonly  attends 
those,  who,  in  their  retired  hours,  use  the  most  unlicensed 
freedom.  True  modesty  is  not  inconsistent  with  affability. 
On  the  contrary,  it  is  compatible  with  the  utmost  freedom, 
when  that  freedom  is  governed  by  discretion.  This  teaches 
both  time  and  judgment.  A  misplaced  confidence,  will  often 
expose,  even  a  modest  woman,  to  suspicions  of  indelicacy. 
Hence  appears  the  necessity  of  an  acquaintance  with  the 
world,  and  a  knowledge  of  the  human  heart.  And  hence, 
also,  the  necessity  of  gaining  this  knowledge,  not  through 
the  superficial  writings  of  human  authors  merely,  but  by 
the  study  of  that  perfect  source  of  information,  the  word  of 
God.  Human  writings  rarely  instruct,  on  this  subject, 
without  corrupting  the  mind.  The  lessons  of  wisdom  con- 
tained in  the  inspired  writings,  are  always  accompanied  with 
such  sanctions,  as  tend  to  suppress  the  remotest  suggestions 
of  the  depraved  heart.     The  very  idea  of  conversing  with 


108  SERMON  VIII. 

God,  if  we  have  any  just  conceptions  of  the  holiness  of  his 
character,  and  the  purity  of  his  law,  awakens  the  soul  to 
vigilance;  and  guards  it  against  the  indulgence  of  those 
thoughts,  which  the  very  nature  of  the  subject  is  calculated 
to  excite. 

It  may  be  necessary,  to  exhibit  the  means,  by  which  this 
principle  of  virtue  may  be  lost  ;  either  by  one  false  step,  or 
a  gradual  decay.  The  most  powerful  of  these  means,  be- 
cause they  excite  the  least  suspicion  of  danger,  are,  either 
intercourse  with  vicious  company,  or  improper  books. 

There  cannot  be  devised  a  more  effectual  method  of  cor* 
rupting  the  minds  of  the  young,  and  the  inexperienced,  than 
that  of  suffering  them  to  mingle  promiscuously  with  persons 
of  either  sex.  It  is  in  this  way,  usually,  that  the  first  les- 
sons of  indelicacy  are  learned  ;  and  that  those  who  have 
been  educated  in  the  refined  sentiments  of  christian  purity, 
become  tainted  with  the  poison  of  worldly  morality.  'Tis 
from  the  sentiments  and  the  examples  of  those  with  whom 
they  are  permitted  to  associate,  that  they  are  first  embold- 
ened to  "overstep  the  modesty  of  nature."  In  these  mixed 
companies — from  which  parents  must  be  excluded,  or  con- 
versation, and  freedom,  and  care,  be  banished — they  are 
taught,  by  the  example  of  their  superiors  in  age,  to  cast  off 
that  reserve,  which  keeps  the  bold  at  a  distance,  and  silences 
the  tongue  of  vulgarity.  It  is  here,  where  no  suspicion 
enters,  that  the  double  meaning  jest,  and  the  loose  song 
of  ribaldry,  wear  away,  by  repetition,  the  blush  winch 
they  first  enkindled ;  and  with  the  blush,  the  purity 
that  occasioned  it.  It  is  here,  that  the  frown  of  indig- 
nation, and  the  modesty  that  excited  it,  at  an  indecent 
tale,  are  gradually  lost ;  and  the  rays  of  complacency,  re- 
flected upon  the  brow,  from  the  undisturbed  countenances  of 
those  Heroines,  who  secretly  scoff  at  the  delicacy  they  never 
possessed.     Even  the  reserve  and  diffidence  which  they  pos- 


SERMON  VIII.  109 

sess,  when  first  introduced  into  such  societies,  keeps  back 
the  expression  of  the  indignant  emotions  which  they  feel ; 
and  the  delicacy  which  is  wounded,  is  made  the  instrument 
of  its  own  destruction.  A  thirst  for  society,  so  natural  to 
the  young,  prevents  their  use  of  those  means  by  which  their 
modesty  is  to  be  preserved.  A  fear  of  future  restraint,  as 
well  as  that  of  offending,  inclines  them  to  conceal  from  their 
parents  and  friends,  the  shocks  they  have  sustained  ;  and 
they  continue  to  frequent  public  places,  and  promiscuous 
companies,  till  little  of  that  sensibility  remains  which  should 
ever  distinguish  the  female  character.  Ignorant  of  the  char- 
acters with  whom  they  associate,  they  go  out,  like  Dinah, 
the  child  of  Leah  and  Jacob,  "to  see  the  daughters  of  the 
land  ;"  and  too  often,  like  her,  meet  Shechemites  in  their 
society,  by  whom  they  are  defiled.  Happy  would  it  prove 
for  them,  and  for  society,  would  the  daughters  of  the  land, 
like  Ruth,  cleave  unto  their  mothers ;  and  say,  like  her, 
"entreat  me  not  to  leave  thee:  for  whither  thou  goest,  I 
will  go ;  and  where  thou  lodgest,  I  will  lodge  ;  thy  people 
shall  be  my  people,  and  thy  God  my  God." 

Public  exhibitions,  and  places  of  mixed  societies,  have 
never  been  found,  within  the  compass  of  our  experience,  to 
contribute,  either  to  the  increase  or  preservation  of  that 
"  shame-facedness"  which  the  Apostle  recommends.  On  the 
contrary,  they  have  almost  invariably,  been  found  to  con- 
taminate the  heart.  A  look,  a  gesture,  or  a  sentiment  bor- 
dering on  looseness,  (and  in  such  places  these  are  innumera- 
ble) have  done  more  to  corrupt  the  imagination,  than  a  thou- 
sand gross  and  direct  applications  to  the  passions.  The 
places  in  which  virtue,  in  any  of  its  forms,  can  be  thus  art- 
fully exposed  ;  and  those  rooms  in  which  modesty  is  thus 
liable  to  be  wounded,  or  rather,  insensibly  destroyed,  should 
be  considered  and  shunned,  by  every  virtuous  woman,  as 
anti-chambers  of  hell.     We  are  indeed  told,  that   virtue   is 


110  SERMON  VOL 

only  to  be  known  by  being  tried;  and  therefore,  that  our 
daughters  should  be  exposed,  in  all  societies,  to  the  lan- 
guage, the  address,  and  the  arts  of  those  of  their  own  and  of 
our  sex,  not  absolutely  expelled,  for  the  grossness  of  their 
immorality,  from  civil  society.  But  it  is  a  tale  of  falshood, 
and  the  sentiment  contained  in  it,  is  full  of  corruption.  We 
are  also  told,  that  those  public  exhibitions,  in  which  all  the 
arts  and  stratagems  of  either  sex  are  represented,  are  favor- 
able to  morality  :  and  many  have  the  weakness  and  impu- 
dence, to  say  publicly,  that  such  exhibitions  are  guards  to 
virtue.  But  the  fatal  experience  of  thousands  can  testify, 
that  at  these  exhibitions,  the  bands  of  virtue  were  first  loos- 
ened, and  finally  dissolved  : — that  there,  the  passions  were 
first  enkindled,  which  consumed  them  : — that  there,,  they  first 
conceived  sentiments  destructive  to  their  peace,  and  became 
enamoured  of  practices,  at  the  thought  of  which,  while  their 
modesty  remained,  their  hearts  revolted  : — that  there,  their 
cupidity  was  engendered,  or,  at  least,  suffered  to  pollute  the 
soul,  and  excited  to  such  vehemence,  as  to  prove  the  occa- 
sion of  their  irretrievable  ruin.  No  woman,  it  is  confident* 
ly  believed,  ever  returned  from  such  a  scene,  with  a  purer 
heart.  The  sentiment  and  the  scene,  which,  on  the  first  re- 
presentation, excites  a  blush  on  the  modest  countenance,  and 
a  chill  of  indignation  throughout  the  frame,  is,  on  the  second 
perhaps,  succeeded  by  a  feebler  struggle — soon  endured 
without  shame — and  next,  welcomed.  But  none,  other  than 
they  who,  by  familiarity  with  such  scenes,  have  experienced 
the  progress  of  the  downfall  of  this  virtue,  can  describe  the 
astonishing  rapidity  with  which  modesty  recedes,  and  its  op- 
posite advances.  Circumstances  may  vary  the  rapidity  of 
the  change  ;  but  on  every  mind,  uninfluenced  by  extraordi- 
nary  checks,  a  change  will  be  produced.  The  scarcity  of 
the  genuine  fruits  of  this  virtue,  is  attributable,  not  on- 
ly to  an  association  with  unworthy  companions,   and  to  the 


SERMON  VIII.  Ill 

frequenting  of  what  are  called,  public  exhibitions  of  life  and 
manners ;  but  also, 

In  the  third  place,  to  injudicious  reading.  There  is  a 
species  of  writing,  in  the  general  reading  of  which,  no  wo- 
man, who  possesses  this  virtue  in  its  genuine  purity,  can  de- 
light. By  whatever  name  it  may  be  called — whether 
Tragedy,  Comedy,  ,Farce,  or  Romance — it  is,  with  few  ex- 
ceptions, though  written  professedly,  in  many  cases,  for  the 
female  sex,  unfit  for  the  eye  of  modesty.  And,  in  proof  of 
this,  it  is  only  necessary  to  state  the  fact,  that  no  woman  of 
worth,  would  venture,  in  presence  of  the  other  sex,  nor  even 
of  one  class  of  her  own,  to  repeat,  in  the  same  language,  all 
the  incidents  of  a  single  volume.  These  books,  not  only  im- 
part wrong  views  of  real  life,  and  engender  false  notions  of 
happiness ;  but  so  blend  together  virtue  and  vice,  that  it 
would  be  difficult,  even  for  the  nicest  casuist,  to  separate 
them.  In  this  view,  therefore,  they  are  highly  injurious  to 
the  morals  of  their  readers :  but  they  are  equally  inimical 
to  the  heart  of  piety,  when  considered  in  their  relation  to 
this  subject.  How  then,  are  the  sex  degraded,  when,  for 
their  use,  our  public  libraries  are  crowded  with  romances — 
and  how  do  they  degrade  themselves,  who  confine  their 
studies  principally  to  books  of  such  a  character  !  ,Why  do 
they  fly  to  their  closets,  to  inspect  the  impurities  of  the 
Monk,  and  similar  works,  but  to  conceal  from  the  world 
their  own  impurity  ?  Why,  but  from  a  dread  that  others 
should  learn,  that  little  remains  of  that  "  shame-facedness," 
which  the  Apostle  recommends,  rather,  which  God  demands? 

To  deny  that  any  good  is  to  be  gained,  by  the  study  of 
fictitious  writers,  would  be  a  plain  contradiction  of  truth  : 
but  to  deny  that  the  evil  produced  by  such  reading,  is  incal- 
culably greater,  would,  if  observation  and  experience  may 
decide,  be  an  equal  violation  of  truth.  Those  therefore, 
who  have  a  proper  regard  for  that  amiable  virtue  of  which 


112  SERMON  VIII. 

we  are  treating — those  who  know  and  feel  the  dignity  of 
their  natures,  and  the  value  of  their  immortal  minds — those 
who  would  rather  be  ornaments  to  society,  and  blessings  to 
their  friends,  than  to  excel  in  the  extent  of  their  acquaintance 
with  love  intrigues — will  cultivate  a  taste  for  a  higher  species 
of  knowledge,  than  that  derived  from  such  writings — a  more 
exalted  employment,  than  that  of  studying  them — a  plea- 
sure more  refined  than  they  can  bestow — and  will  be  assid- 
uous to  lay  up  a  more  nourishing  food,  for  consolation  and 
support  in  the  retrospect  of  life. 

III.  I  proceed  to  the  last  subject  of  consideration,  sug- 
gested by  the  text.  This  is  sobriety — a  virtue,  or  rather,  a 
course  of  conduct  proceeding  from  a  principle  of  holiness, 
without  which,  modesty  of  apparel  would  be  of  little  per- 
sonal benefit ;  and  shame-facedness,  but  a  suspicious  cover- 
ing. By  an  unaccountable  madness,  the  world  have  gener- 
ally been  prone  to  consider  giddiness,  and  thoughtlessness, 
as  inseparable  from  a  female  mind  :  and  this  levity,  has,  by 
some  means,  in  their  estimation,  become  transformed  into  a 
virtue.  Their  early  studies,  and  their  later  avocations,  (I 
speak  of  those  of  the  higher  classes  of  society)  are,  but  too 
commonly,  of  a  description  which  do  them  no  honor.  But 
if  they  deem  it  (as  they  certainly  must)  an  insult  upon 
the  sex,  to  be  esteemed  triflers,  why  should  they  not  dis- 
appoint the  expectations  of  the  world,  and  cultivate  the  vir- 
tue which  Christianity  recommends  ?  Why  should  they  be 
averse  to  that  sobriety,  which  only  can  dignify  them,  in  the 
eyes  of  their  worthiest  admirers  ?  Christian  sobriety  never 
stoops  to  trifle  with  serious  things  ;  nor  to  be  ever  trifling 
about  nothing.  A  woman  without  reflection,  is  but  a  mere 
puppet  in  society,  and  can  only  please  as  puppets  do. 

The  sex,  however,  disclaim  the  demerit  of  whatever  they 
possess  of  vanity  and  frivolity,  and  of  their  want  of  the 
more  solid  and  substantial  accomplishments.     And  doubtless 


SERMON  VIII.  113 

they  complain  with  propriety,  of  injustice  in  the  other  sex, 
in  the  neglects  which  attend  their  education,  and  their  ne- 
cessary deficiences  in  consequence  of  those  neglects.  But 
aside  from  the  scientific  accomplishments  of  the  mind,  they 
complain  with  no  appearance  of  reason.  Their  deficiences 
in  the  virtues  of  the  heart,  be  their  literary  education  what 
it  may,  are  chargeable  solely,  or  principally,  on  themselves. 
And  did  they  generally  consider  their  consequence — did  they 
realize  that  they  are  possessed  of  immortal  minds — did  they 
feel  the  value,  the  immortal  worth,  of  these — they  never 
would  submit  to  be  debarred  a  species  of  learning,  infinitely 
more  valuable  than  that  taught  by  human  sages.  From 
these  treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge,  no  human  arm 
can  detain  them.  From  drinking  deep  at  the  fountain  of 
divine  learning,  no  human  power,  without  their  concurrence, 
can  prevent  them.  This,  in  spite  of  the  laws  imposed  by 
custom — in  spite  of  our  illiberality — they  may  obtain.  They 
cannot,  generally,  be  their  advantages  what  they  may,  be- 
come politicians,  philosophers,  and  warriors  :  but  they  may 
become  christians.  From  the  word  of  God  we  may  learn, 
that  the  great  Creator  designed  woman  to  move  in  a  differ- 
ent sphere  from  that  of  man  ;  and  all  the  directions  given  to 
her  in  the  sacred  volume,  while  they  recognize  her  impor- 
tance in  society,  seem  to  imply  that  her  only  empire  is  her 
household:  to  no  other  should  she  aspire.  "Teach  them," 
says  the  Apostle,  "  to  be  sober,  discreet,  chaste,  and  keepers  at 
home"  This  sphere,  in  which  heaven  has  placed  them,  is 
sufficiently  large  to  employ  all  their  time.  To  fill  their 
places  with  dignity  and  usefulness,  requires  no  small  share 
of  wisdom ;  and  to  discharge  with  fidelity,  the  difficult 
duties  of  their  apparently  humble  station,  will  engage  all 
their  virtue.  On  their  virtue  and  fidelity  here,  depends^ 
in  a  great  measure,  the  happiness  of  the  world.  Think 
not  then,  for  a  moment,  that  God  has  degraded — He 
15 


114  SERMON  VIA. 

has  highly  exalted, — the  sex.  'Tis  through  the  piety, 
the  care,  the  watchfulness,  the  indefatigable  zeal  of  mo- 
thers, that  the  sons  of  men  are  trained  up  to  virtue.  'Tis 
through  them,  as  God's  instruments,  and  under  their  foster- 
ing care,  that  virtuous  habits  are  first  formed,  that  the  mor- 
als of  society  are  exalted  to  the  christian  standard,  and  the 
world  preserved  from  an  universal  corruption  of  manners  : 
and  hence  appears  the  wisdom  and  force  of  that  maxim  of 
the  king  of  Israel,  so  often  repeated — "The  price  of  a  virtu- 
ous woman  is  far  above  rubies."  And  from  the  extertsive- 
ness  of  the  influence  of  woman  in  society,  either  good  or  evil 
according  to  her  character,  we  may  learn  the  justness  of 
the  following  sayings  of  the  same  author.  "  For  three 
things,  the  earth  is  disquieted  ;  and  for  four,  it  cannot  bear. 
For  a  servant  when  he  reigneth  ;  and  a  fool  when  he  is  fill- 
ed with  meat.  For  an  odious  woman  when  she  is  married; 
and  an  handmaid  that  is  heir  to  her  mistress."  Happy  for 
the  world,  that  the  wisdom  of  God  has  given  to  those  whose 
influence  is  so  extensive,  a  situation  peculiarly  favorable  to 
virtue.  That  the  situation  of  women  is  such,  is  evident  from 
the  undeniable  truth,  that  the  number  and  piety  of  christian, 
professors  throughout  the  world,  is  altogether  in  their  fa- 
vor ;  and  on  no  other  principle,  can  we  satisfactorily  account 
for  the  existence  of  this  fact.  How  aggravated,  then,  must 
be  the  misery  of  those  who,  enjoying  the  best  means  for  be- 
coming virtuous,  and  the  most  favorable  situation  for  the  in- 
culcation of  virtuous  sentiments,  cast  off  the  restraints  which 
God  has  imposed,  leave  the  sphere  in  which  he  has  placed 
them,  and,  by  a  violation  of  his  commandments,  become 
either  useless,  or  burdensome  to  the  world  ! 

How  important,  then,  to  guard  against  the,  first  inroads 
upon  virtue,  and  to  cultivate  the  temper  of  the  christian  ! 
'Tis  not  for  want  of  ability,  but  of  inclination,  that  women 
are  not  more  generally  proficients  in  this  science.     'Tis,  also, 


SERMON  VIII.  lli» 

because  their  sobriety  is  often  the  result  of  views  of  policy 
merely,  instead  of  being  grounded  on  the  eternal  basis  of 
love  to  God.  Innumerable  are  the  cases,  in  which  the 
christian  rules  of  sobriety  will  be  violated,  if  the  general 
temper  be  formed,  or  the  conduct  founded,  on  any  other 
than  christian  principles. 

Let  women,  then,  consider  their  high  destiny,  and  couri 
the  approbation  of  their  consciences,  rather  than  the  ap- 
plauses or  flatteries  of  the  world.  Let  their  labour  be,  to 
obtain  the  smiles  of  him  who  searcheth  the  heart,  rather 
than  the  admiration  of  those  witlings  who  are  captivated 
with  an  outside.  "  Favour  is  deceitful,  and  beauty  is  vain  ; 
but  a  woman  that  feareth  the  Lord,  she  shall  be  praised." 
To  be  polished  after  the  similitude  of  a  palace,  will  avail 
but  little,  if  the  inner  apartments  be  unfinished', .or  filled  with 
vanity  and  uncleanness.  The  reflection  of  having  been  sur- 
rounded by  the  popin-j  ays  of  the  age — loaded  with  adula- 
tion—and crowned  with  the  perishing  laurels  of  time  ;  will 
afford  no  satisfaction,  to  the  soul  thirsting  for  immortality, 
when  it  shall  be  summoned  to  leave  its  earthly  tenement. 
Bui  the  remembrance  of  having  honored  God,  and  blessed 
the  world,  by  a  life  of  piety,  usefulness  and  sobriety,  will 
give  joy  unutterable,  to  the  departing  soul,  when  Jesus  shall 
beckon  it  to  his  arms. 


SERMON  IX. 

the  duty  of  confessing  christ. 

Matthew  x.  32,  33. 

Whosoever  therefore  shall  confess  me  before  men,  him  will  I  con- 
fess also  before  my  Father  which  is  in  Heaven.  But  whosoever 
shall  deny  me  before  men,  him  will  1  also  deny  before  my 
Father  ichich  is  in  heaven. 

-IT  is  a  sentiment  of  inspiration,  too  little  known,  or  too 
little  regarded,  that  the  curse  of  the  Lord  is  in  the  house  of 
the  wicked,  and  his  blessing  in  the  habitation  of  the  just. 
By  the  wicked,  are  meant  such  as  are  not  willing,  freely  to 
avouch  the  Lord  to  be  their  God  ;  to  subject  themselves  to 
his  government,  and  bind  themselves  to  the  obedience  of  his 
laws. — For  so  is  the  will  of  God,  concerning  all  who  have 
forsaken  their  Father's  house,  and  hastened  after  another 
God.  They  who  are  thus  alienated  from  the  life  of  God,  are 
strangers  to  the  covenant  of  promise — His  covenant  of  life 
and  peace  is  not  with  them  :  and  they  only  are  numbered 
among  the  friends  of  God,  who  have  fled  for  refuge,  to  lay 
hold  on  this  covenant  as  the  only  hope  of  fallen  man.  These 


SERMON  IX.  117 

®nly,  are  entitled  to  the  blessings  which  God  has  promised 
to  the  righteous.  Such  is  the  language  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, and  these  sentiments  are  confirmed  in  the  New.  Our 
Saviour,  of  consequence,  when  he  sent  forth  the  Seventy  in 
his  name,  bade  them,  into  whatever  house  they  entered,  first 
say,  Peace  be  unto  this  house  ;  and  if  a  son  of  peace  were 
there — a  friend  of  God — to  leave  their  blessing  in  God's 
name  :  but  if  not,  said  he,  your  peace  shall  return  to  you — 
that  Is,  you  shall  leave  every  house,  in  which  you  find  no 
friend  of  his,  under  the  curse  of  God.  The  promised  bless- 
ings of  the  covenant  shall  never  be  theirs,  who  spurn  its  of- 
fered benefits,  and  decline  to  subscribe  heartily  to  its  obliga- 
tions. But  the  voice  of  rejoicing,  is  in  the  tabernacles  of 
the  righteous.  God  has  made  with  Them  an  everlasting  cov- 
enant, to  do  them  good  ;  and  upon  them,  and  their  seed,  his 
blessing  rests  forever. 

To  the  intelligent  and  attentive  hearer,  it  is  needless  to 
say,  all  this  is  confirmed  and  sanctioned  in  the  text.  How 
clearly,  then,  is  it  the  duty  and  the  glory  of  us  all,  cordially 
to  subscribe  to  the  covenant  of  grace  presented  in  Christ. 

Let  me  shew  you,  first,  in  few  words,  what  it  is  to  confess 
Christ — Secondly,  whence  it  appears  to  be  the  duty  of  us 
all — And  thirdly,  enforce  this  duty,  by  the  sanction  annexed 
to  the  injunction. 

I.  To  confess  Christ,  in  the  sense  of  the  text,  is  not  mere- 
ly to  admit  the  superior  excellence  of  his  character,  and  the 
transcendant  importance  of  his  religion.  The  most  licentious 
among  men  have  done  this,  both  in  the  sobrieties  of  life,  and 
the  solemnities  of  death. 

To  confess  Christ,  in  the  sense  of  the  text,  is  not  merely 
to  be  willing  to  espouse  his  cause  in  periods  of  peculiar  re- 
ligious prosperity.  Many,  in  such  a  state  of  the  church, 
have  done  this,  who,  when  persecution  has  arisen,  have 
changed  their  ground,  and  abetted  and  comforted  the  enemy. 


118  SERMON  IX. 

To  confess  Christ,  in  the  sense  of  the  text,  is  not  merely 
to  call  ourselves  his  disciples,  and  eat  and  drink  in  remem- 
brance of  him,  at  the  sacramental  table.  Many  do  this, 
whom  he  declares  he  will  deny  before  his  Father,  and  assem- 
bled worlds. 

To  confess  Christ,  in  the  sense  of  the  text,  is  publicly  to 
avow  our  attachment  to  him  and  his  religion,  with  a  cordi- 
ality which  will  bear  the  test  of  the  most  discouraging  times, 
and  the  scrutiny  of  the  Judgment-day — With  an  affection, 
which  will  sooner  die  for  him,  than  deliberately  and  perse- 
veringly  deny  him.  It  is  publicly  to  avow  ourselves  Christ's 
friends,  with  a  temper,  preferring  rather  to  be  hated  of  all 
men  for  his  name's  sake,  than  to  secure  the  highest  pos- 
sible advantage  which  men  ever  promise  themselves,  in  either 
the  speculative  or  practical  denial  of  him.  Such  a  cordiality 
as  this,  will  endure  all  trials  :  it  will  triumph  over  every 
enemy.  The  man  who  possesses  it,  will  endure  unto  the 
end  j  and  he  who  does  this,  shall  be  saved,  saith  the  Lord. 
The  exposition,  which  essentially  varies  this  view  of  the  sub- 
ject, is  inconsistent  with  the  context,  and  the  whole  tenor  of 
the  gospel.  To  make  such  a  profession  of  religion,  is  to 
confess  Christ  before  men  ;  and  though  we  are  often  told, 
in  answer  to  these  remarks,  that  profession  merely  is  worse 
than  in  vain,  it  will  be  kept  in  mind,  that  the  sentiment  we 
are  now  secondly  to  illustrate,  is  no  contradiction  of  this 
answer.  It  is  not  mere  profession,  which  we  allege  to  be 
the  duty  of  all.  Circumcision  is  nothing,  and,  uncii'cum- 
sion  is  nothing,  but  the  keeping  the  commandment  of  God. 

II.  How,  then,  does  it  appear  to  be  the  duty  of  us  all 
thus  to  confess  Christ?  If  this  duty  can  be  shown  to  be 
binding  on  all,  it  will  be  on  them  who  neglect  it,  to  satisfy 
themselves,  and  to  satisfy  their  Judge,  that  they  are  not  the 
men — ashamed  of  him  and  his  words — of  whom  the  Son  of 


SERMON  IX.  119 

man  will   be  ashamed,  when  he  comes  in  the  glory  of  his 
Father,  with  the  holy  angels. 

1.  That  this  duty  is  of  universal  obligation,  appears, 
then,  in  the  first  place,  from  the  explicit  and  universal 
command  of  Christ.  This  is  contained  in  the  commis- 
sion he  gave,  at  first,  to  his  Apostles.  When  he  bade 
them  preach  the  gospel  to  all  nations — to  disciple  and 
baptize  all  men  in  his  name — he  gave,  through  them,  to 
mankind,  a  command  to  receive,  embrace,  and  adhere  to  his 
religion,  in  the  face  of  the  world,  from  which  it  required 
them  to  separate.  If  to  do  this,  be  not  possible  for  any 
other,  than  the  man  who  makes  such  a  profession  of  reli- 
gion, as  we  have  shown  to  be  implied  in  confessing  Christ 
before  men,  then  is  it  the  duty  of  all,  to  whom  the  command 
has  reached,  to  make  such  profession.  In  the  execution  of 
their  commission,  the  Apostles  went  forth  and  preached 
every  where,  that  men  should  repent,  and  believe  the  gos- 
pel— observe  all  its  ordinances,  in  the  spirit  and  design  of 
their  establishment — and  that  being  first  willing  to  do  their 
duty,  they  should  bind  themselves  to  do  it,  by  solemn  cove- 
nant. 

There  is  a  distinct  command  of  Christ,  necessarily  imply- 
ing the  obligation  of  all  for  whom  he  died,  to  commemorate 
his  death.—"  This  do,  in  remembrance  of  me" — is  an  ex- 
plicit command,  only  to  his  friends  :  but,  as  all  men  are  laid 
under  obligations  to  be  his  friends,  by  his  disinterested  sac- 
rifice of  his  life  for  them,  the  command,  by  implication,  ex- 
tends to  as  many  as  were  ever  hii  enemies.  Now,  as  he 
cannot  receive  the  atonement,  who  does  not  cordially  be- 
lieve ;  so,  neither  can  he  receive  the  symbols  of  Christ's 
body  and  blood,  to  the  end  for  which  they  were  designed, 
without  a  sincere  profession  of  his  belief.  We  cannot,  then, 
seriously  doubt,  that  such  is  the  duty  of  us  all  :  for  since  no 
man,  under  the  gospel,    can   take   neutral   ground — since 


120  SERMON  IX. 

every  man  is  either  the  friend,  or  the  enemy  of  Christ — 
every  man  is  included  in  the  command,  to  commemorate  his 
love  in  dying  for  hira. 

2.  To  confess  Christ,  is  the  duty  of  all,  inasmuch  as  it  is 
but  an  act  of  justice  to  God.  Justice  consists  in  rendering 
to  all  their  dues  :  and  who  does  not  know,  that,  to  the  per- 
fections of  God,  are  due  the  most  public,  explicit,  and  cor- 
dial acknowledgments,  of  all  his  intelligent  offspring  !  He 
that  honoreth  not  the  Son,  honoreth  not  the  Father.  Such 
a  profession  of  Christianity,  therefore,  is,  demonstratively, 
the  duty  of  us  all ;  and  the  tender  and  solemn  appeal  of 
God  to  our  consciences  must  not  pass  by  us  unregarded. — 
"  If  I  be  a  Father,  where  is  my  honor  ?  If  a  master,  where 
is  my  fear,  saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts,  unto  you  that  despise 
my  name  ?"  But  "  to  them  who  fear  it,  shall  the  sun  of 
righteousness  arise,  with  healing  in  his  beams." 

3.  In  the  third  place,  the  duty  of  confessing  Christ  arises 
from  our  social  relations ;  and  is  obvious,  from  the  connec- 
tion in  which  God  has  placed  us.  We  live  in  the  midst  of 
society.  Our  conduct  is  inspected  by  men  ;  and  is  fitted, 
whether  it  be  good  or  ill,  to  have  influence  on  those  by 
whom  we  are  surrounded.  It  often  does  have  an  influence, 
such  as  its  tendency  indicates.  All  considerations,  then, 
which  go  to  evince  the  propriety  (if  our  attachment  to  our 
supreme  Lord  and  Law-giver,  serve  equally  to  show,  that  it 
is  our  duty  to  express  that  attachment  in  every  honorable 
and  lawful  manner  before  men.  Especially,  is  this  manifest, 
in  view  of  the  reigning  defection  from  God.  The  apostacy 
of  our  race  brings  us  all  into  suspicion.  Respect  to  the  di- 
vine declarations,  leaves  us  no  ground  to  believe  any  man 
the  friend  of  God,  who  does  not  avow  himself  such,  and  jus- 
tify that  avowal  by  a  correspondent  life.  Not  to  confess 
Christ  before  men,  is,  therefore,  to  countenance  the  crimes 
of  disaffection,  to  take  part  in   continuing  the  show  of  gen- 


SERMON  IX.  121 

eral  revolt.  It  is  to  leave  men,  without  ground  for  suppos- 
ing us  the  friends  of  God  ;  and  so  far,  virtually  justifying 
the  conduct  of  the  wicked,  and  condemning  that  of  the  just. 
I  am  aware,  that  it  has  been  said,  that  religion  is  wholly  a 
secret  affair — involving  affections  and  actions,  of  which  man 
has  no  cognizance — lying  only  between  God  and  the  soul. 
But  I  have  looked  in  vain,  to  find  this  saying  supported  by 
divine  authority.  The  Law  of  God,  on  the  contrary,  teaches 
us  decisively,  that  the  religion,  which  does  not  extend  its  in- 
fluence to  the  welfare  of  our  neighbour,  in  the  same  degree 
as  to  our  own,  is  not  acknowledged  in  heaven — That  the  re- 
ligion of  any  man,  which  is  of  no  use  to  his  neighbour,  is 
useless  to  himself.  For  this,  wo  is  denounced  against  him 
who  makes  others  to  transgress.  For  this,  all  who  are  dis- 
posed to  be  on  the  Lord's  side,  are  required,  by  positive 
statute,  to  cease  their  indiscriminate  connection  with  the 
world — "wherefore,  come  out  from  among  them,  and  be  ye 
separate,  and  touch  not  the  unclean  thing ;  and  I  will  be  a 
Father  to  you,  and  ye  shall  be  my  sons  and  daughters,  saitu 
the  Lord  Almighty." 

Love  to  God  and  our  neighbour,  then,  and  the  proper 
manifestation  of  such  love,  are  so  entirely  incompatible  with 
the  neglect  to  confess  Christ  before  men,  that  a  public  pro- 
fession of  religion  would  be  the  obvious  duty  of  us  all,  had 
we  no  explicit  command.  Consider  this  argument  a  little 
more  at  length.  Are  we  not  bound,  by  every  tie  of  human- 
ity and  religion,  of  parental  and  fraternal  affection,  to  help 
our  fellow  men  to  heaven  ;  and,  for  this  end,  to  furnish  them 
in  all  things,  an  example  of  obedience  to  God — a  holy  ex- 
ample ?  But  is  there  any  thing  holy — is  there  any  thing 
like  obedience,  in  throwing  the  weight  of  our  influence, 
whether  great  or  small,  into  the  scale  opposed  to  the  cross 
of  Christ  ?  Is  there  any  thing  like  obedience,  any  thing  like 
love  to  our  neighbour,  in  countenancing  the  delusion,  that  a 
10 


12^  SERMON  IX. 

man  may  be  wholly  on  the  Lord's  side,  and  altogether  a 
christian,  though  he  do  not  confess  Christ  before  men  ?  No 
good  man  will  say  to  the  Lord,  in  the  unsOftened  impudence 
of  Cain,  "  am  I  my  brother's  keeper  ?"  No  man  of  good 
judgment  will  affirm,  that  to  neglect  to  confess  Christ,  is 
not,  in  our  circumstances,  to  lend  our  influence,  and  give 
countenance,  to  the  unbelieving  world.  The  church  are  au- 
thorized to  suppose,  and  the  world  mil  suppose,  that  he  who 
does  not  profess  to  be  a  christian,  is  not  a  christian — That 
he  who  does  not  pretend  to  be  the  disciple  of  Christ,  is  not 
his  disciple.  And  this,  because,  as  a  general  rule  it  is  a  cor- 
rect one,  that  men  are  no  better  than  their  professions  indi- 
cate. Profession  is  now  so  easy  and  so  safe,  and  that  branch 
of  charity  which  hopeth  all  things,  (not  contradicted  by  pal- 
pable evidence)  so  generally  practised  in  our  churches,  that 
he  who  neglects  to  profess,  withholds  unnecessarily  one  pos- 
itive proof,  however  weak  it  be,  of  loving  God,  and  his 
neighbour.  Can  any  such  man  say,  he  has  rendered  to  all 
their  dues? — That  he  has  been  just  to  God  ;  benevolent,  to 
the  extent  of  his  ability,  to  his  neighbour;  and  faithful  to 
his  own  soul  ? 

4.  But,  over  all,  Christ's  relation  to  us,  as  our  Redeem- 
er, renders  obligatory  on  us,  the  cordial  profession  of  his 
religion.  Let  us  forget,  for  a  moment,  every  other  relation. 
Let  us  forget  our  obligation,  even  to  Christ  himself,  arising 
from  the  perfections  of  his  nature,  the  glories  of  his  person, 
and  the  excellence  of  his  righteousness.  Let  us  overlook, 
too,  all  our  obligations  to  him,  as  the  author  of  our  being, 
as  the  upholder  of  those  heavens,  and  the  source  of  all  phy- 
sical supplies,  to  this  dependant,  and  richly  stored,  and  pop- 
ulated earth.  Let  us  think  of  him  now,  only  in  the  office 
of  our  Redeemer,  executing,  with  unparalleled  skill,  and 
kindness,  and  grace,  the  whole  work  of  enlightening,  and 
ransoming,  and  subjugating  to  his  dominion,  a  benighted, 


SERMON  IX.  126 

enslaved,  and  revolted  world.  Think,  a  moment,  what  Je- 
sus Christ  has  done  for  our  souls — to  what  he  has  submit- 
ted— and  under  what  circumstances,  he  has  thus  acted  and 
suffered  !  You  do  not  need  the  detail.  Think  only  general- 
ly, what  Christianity  has  done  for  the  Pagan — for  the  Savage 
— for  Woman — for  the  victim  of  oppression — for  the  dying — 
for  every  prisoner  of  the  grave  ! — Think  at  what  expense — 
for  what  a  race  of  beings  !  See  him,  who  was  with  God  in 
the  beginning,  him  who  was  God,  descending  from  the 
throne,  to  take  the  nature  and  the  form  of  a  servant.  Guile- 
less and  good,  as  his  condition  was  humiliating,  behold  him, 
by  the  very  creatures  he  came  to  save,  hated,  hunted,  spurn- 
ed from  their  presence,  mocked,  defamed,  reviled,  scourged, 
spit  upon,  crucified,  and,  in  the  hour  of  his  death,  forsaken! 
And  all  this,  without  repenting  or  repining  ;  that  he  might 
bear  our  iniquities,  reconcile  us  to  God,  and  purify  us  from 
a  moral  loathsomeness,  such  as  none  but  the  most  indecent 
images  in  nature,  can  duly  represent.  Why  all  this  ?  Was 
it  for  a  reward  from  us  ?  O  !  who  can  think  of  profiting  a 
mind,  rich  in  perfection,  like  his  ?  Angels  dare  not  hope  to 
do  it.  What,  sinner  !  canst  thou  do  ?  No,  it  was  only  for 
the  joy  set  before  him,  of  making  the  bad  man  holy,  and 
the  miserable  happy.  And  is  it,  rational  creature  1  too  much 
to  expect  in  return,  that  you  acknowledge  your  obligations, 
give  him  the  chief  place  in  your  affections,  and  confess  him, 
before  men,  the  chiefest  of  your  friends  ?  Is  this  an  extrav- 
agantu-equital  of  his  benefits  ?  Is  this  doing  something  more 
than  a  sinner's  duty  ?  The  most  impoverished  soul,  that 
shall  ever  breathe  the  air,  and  pluck  the  fruits  of  the  celes- 
tial Paradise,  will  blush  for  the  man  who  ever  thought  it  an 
unreasonable  service.  And  the  christian  of  chief  attain- 
ments, even  on  earth,  has  learned  unhesitatingly  to  sing, 

"  Had  I  ten  thousand  hearts  and  lives, 
"  My  Lord,  I'd  give  them  all  to  thee." 


124  SERMON  IX. 

Such  are  the  direct  proofs,  which  are  furnished  us  by  the 
record,  that  a  profession  of  Christianity  is  the  duty  of  us  all 
But  to  all  these  various  evidences,  clear  and  strong  as  they 
may  appear  to  the  serious  and  candid  hearer,  it  will  be   ob- 
jected, by  one  class  of  men,  that   God,  by   express   statute, 
has  forbidden  the  wicked  to  take  his  covenant  in  their  mouth ; 
that  the  command,  of  consequence,  extends  only  to  the  pure 
in  heart.     In  reply  to  this  objection,  let  it  be  remarked,  that 
the  command  is  nevertheless  binding  upon  all  men,  because 
it  is  the  duty  of  every  man,  instead  of  living  in  sin,  to  break 
off  his  sins  by  righteousness,  and  his  iniquities    by    turning 
unto  the  Lord.     For  "the  grace  of  God,  which  hath  ap- 
peared unto  all  men,  teacheth  us,  that  denying  ungodliness, 
and  every  worldly  lust,  we  should  live  soberly,  righteously, 
and  godly,  in  this  present  evil  world. "     The    confession   of 
Christ,  involves  obedience  to  these  commands,  addressed  di- 
rectly to  the  wicked.     The  objection,  therefore,  has  no  va- 
lidity :  for  "  the  wrath    of   God    is    revealed   from   heaven, 
against  all   ungodliness  and  unrighteousness  of  men ;"  and 
when,  to  execute  this  wrath,  Christ  shall  be  revealed    from 
heaven,  the  objects  of  his  vengeance  will  include  all  who 
know  not,  that  is,  acknowledge  not,  God,  and  obey  not  the 
gospel  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.     The  plea  of  wickedness, 
for    neglecting  to  confess  Christ,  is  a  denial  of  him,  and,  at 
the  bar  of  Christ,  is  only  a  claim  to  be  denied  by  him  before 
his  Father.    Let  no  man  longer  deceive  himself,  through  such 
a  pretext,  with  the  hope  that  he  is  not  daily  neglecting  his 
duty  in  this  particular. 

To  these  various  evidences,  in  relation  to  the  duty  of  us 
all,  it  will  be  objected  by  another  class  of  men,  that  the 
church  is  impure  ;  its  doctrines  are  corrupt,  or  its  practice 
is  profane  :  that  the  faithful  city  is  spoiled  j  righteousness, 
lodged  in  it,  but  now  murderers.  Let  such  men  remember 
the  only  terms  on  which  Christ  will  receive  them.    Let  them 


SERMON  IX.  120 

forsake  father  and  mother,  houses  and  lands,  wife  and  child- 
ren, and  all  that  they  have,  rather  than  live  in  the  denial  oi' 
Christ.  Let  them  go  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  rather  than  fail 
to  confess  him  before  men  :  and  if,  in  all  the  christian  world, 
they  can  find  no  brethren  of  the  Lord,  let  them  inquire  how 
far  they  are  from  the  denial  of  him,  who  has  promised  to 
maintain  a  church  on  earth,  against  which  the  gates  of  hell 
shall  not  prevail.  Rather,  let  them  carefully  inquire,  if  on 
them  does  not  rest  the  curse  of  Meroz,  who,  because  of  im- 
proper attachment  to  the  Canaanites,  refused  to  come  up  to 
the  help  of  the  Lord,  to  the  help  of  the  Lord  against  the 
mighty.  Let  them  see  (if  they  be  serious  in  their  objection) 
if  they  be  not  acting  in  direct  opposition  to  the  known  will  of 
God,  and  covering,  under  this  specious  reason,  the  rebellious 
objection,  who  is  the  Lord,  that  we  should  obey -his  voice  ! 
If  such  be  indeed  the  lustre  of  their  righteousness,  that  the 
sacred  fire  of  Zion  is  as  darkness,  when  their  light  ariseth, 
then,  of  all  men,  they  are  the  most  pointedly  admonished, 
to  come  up  the  help  of  the  Lord  ;  and  with  the  small  cords 
to  scourge,  and  with  the  fan  to  separate,  and  with  the  light 
of  truth  in  doctrine,  and  of  holiness  in  their  example,  to  pu- 
rify, till  the  Temple  be  freed  from  its  mercenaries  ;  and  all 
who  worship  in  it,  be  clothed  with  the  robes  of  righteousness, 
and  attired  in  the  garments  of  salvation. 

There  is  still  a  third  class  of  men,  who,  in  defiance  of  all 
this  various  evidence,  feel  it  rather  their  duty  to  decline  a 
profession  of  Christianity,  for  want  of  the  qualifications  of  a 
christian.  Yes,  lamentable  as  is  the  fact,  there  are  sober 
men,  who  thus  make  a  merit  of  their  disobedience,  and  com- 
pass themselves  about  with  sparks,  and  walk  in  the  light  of 
no  other  fire,  than  their  own  hands  have  kindled.  They 
neglect  to  confess  Christ,  because  they  are  unworthy  of  the 
blessings  of  his  disciples.  What  is  this,  but  to  say,  they 
owe  him  less  than  is  due  to   the  world,  or  more   than  they 


126  SERMON  IX. 

are  willing  to  acknowledge  ?  What  is  this  but  to  make  diso- 
bedience a  virtue  ;  and  to  resolve  on  perseverance  in  the 
neglect  of  privileges,  because  unworthy  to  enjoy,  or  unable 
to  merit  them  ?  What  is  it,  but  to  make  light  of  the  invita- 
tions of  the  gospel,  and  to  despise  and  reject  both  the  offerer 
and  the  gift  ?  If  this  ground  be  tenable,  the  plea  of  unworth- 
iness  proves  disobedience  a  duty.  What  a  sentiment  is  this, 
to  carry  to  the  tribunal  of  him  who  has  commanded  us  to 
confess  him  before  men.  Who  ever  heard,  that  it  was  more 
worthy  of  a  sinner,  to  disobey  his  Lord,  and  refuse  the  ser- 
vice enjoined,  than  to  do  it,  though  it  be  but  imperfectly  ? 
O  !  mistaken  man,  if  the  plea  of  unworthiness  can  furnish 
any  recommendation,  we  may  avail  ourselves  of  it  when  we 
have  done  all  that  is  commanded  us.  Even  then,  we  shall 
be  able  to  say,  we  are  unprofitable  servants — we  have  con- 
ferred no  favor.  Can  any  enlightened  conscience,  then-,  be 
satisfied  with  the  excuse  ?  Does  Christ  offer  the  privileges  of 
his  kingdom  to  a  sinner,  and  leave  him  innocent  in  refusing 
to  receive  them  ?  Hearken,  brethren  !  These  offended 
privileges  were  purchased  by  his  biood  ;  and  to  despise 
the  gift,  is  to  despise  the  blood  which  purchased  the  gift, 
and  thus,  to  despise  the  victim,  and  the  God  who  ordained 
and  accepted  the  sacrifice.  The  plea  of  unworthiness,  then, 
considered  as  an  objection  to  the  evidence  of  our  obligation 
to  confess  Christ,  is  in  the  last  degree  absurd.  Christ  does 
not  stake  our  liberty  to  receive  the  gospel,  on  any  contin- 
gency concerning  our  state  ;  nor  found  our  duty,  on  our 
worthiness  to  receive  the  privilege.  But,  without  any  con- 
dition, requires  us  to  confess  him  before  men  ;  and  bids  us, 
without  any  reservation,  use  and  enjoy  all  the  privileges  of 
the  gospel,  and  whoever  has  any  just  sense  of  his  obligation 
to  Christ,  joined  with  any  sincere  desires  to  perform  the  du- 
ties thence  arising,  must   not  fail  to  avow  his  attachment  to 


SERMON  IX.  127 

the  Saviour,  and  join  himself  to  his  people   and    his   ordin- 
ances. 

But  there  is  a  fourth  class,  whose  serious  and  sober  life, 
and  whose  conscientious  scruples,  demand  an  answer,  not  to 
their  objections,  for  they  have  none,  but  to  their  inquiries. 
Men  who  hope  in  God,  who  trust,  at  times,  that  they  are  the 
friends  of  Christ,  but  whose  fears  and  doubts  of  their  godly 
sincerity  prevail.  What  in  these  circumstances  is  our  duty  ? 
Unquestionably  the  same  with  that  of  any  other  man — to 
confess  Christ — before  which,  an  Apostle  would  only  say, 
"  Examine  yourselves,  whether  ye  be  in  the  faith  :  prove 
your  own  selves  ;  Christ  is  in  you,  except  ye  be  reprobates — 
He  is  in  you,  the  only  hope  of  glory."  The  man  who  is  sin- 
cerely desirous  of  avoiding  every  sin,  (and  this  is  character- 
istic of  the  christian)  cannot  be  contented  and  happy,  while 
living  in  neglect  of  so  important  a  duty — while  guilty  of 
disobedience  to  so  plain  a  command.  He  will  ever  have 
reason  to  reproach  his  conscience,  till  it  cease  to  slumber ; 
and  when  it  is  awaked,  it  will  never  cease  to  reproach  him, 
till  he  have  respect  to  all  God's  commandments. 

The  more  tender  our  conscience,  the  more  godly  our  jeal- 
ousy, and  the  more  solicitous  we  are  to  avoid  hypocrisy, 
and  fearful,  lest  we  dishonor  our  profession — the  inore  cer- 
tain is  it,  that  we  shall  be  single  in  our  aims,  prayerful  in 
our  temper,  and  circumspect  in  our  conversation.  Happy 
the  man,  who  thus  feareth  alway.  To  such  it  was  said, 
what  carefulness  did  it  operate  in  you,  yea,  what  vehement 
desire,  yea  what  indignation,  zeal,  revenge,  and  anxiety  in 
all  things  to  escape  sin,  to  be  clear  of  guilt. 

What  then  is  the  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter  ?  To  the 
openly  vicious,  we  say,  you  deny  Christ  in  the  sense  of  the 
text,  whether  you  profess  to  be  his  disciple  or  not.  As  you 
value  the  soul,  then,  we  intreat  you,  believe  with  the  heart 
unto  righteousness;  and  make  confession,  with  the  mouth. 


12S  SERMON  IX. 

unto  salvation.  To  all  who  do  this,  the  promise  is  explicit ; 
to  all  who  decline,  in  wilful  disobedience,  the  threat  is  abso- 
lute. Confess  Christ  then.  You  have  nothing  to  sacrifice, 
in  order  to  this,  but  your  sins.  In  former  times  more  was 
necessary.  Christ  was  then  to  be  confessed  at  the  actual 
sacrifice,  not  only  of  sin,  but  of  friends  and  reputation,  pro- 
perty, liberty,  and  life.  Yet  there  were  men,  who  counted 
it  all  joy  to  fall  into  these  divers  temptations  :  who*took 
joyfully,  the  spoiling  of  their  goods  :  who  cheerfully  became 
as  the  offscouring  of  all  things,  and  emulous  of  laying  down 
their  lives  ;  thankful  to  have  so  much  to  offer  in  sacrifice  to 
Christ.  If,  with  scarce  any  of  these  temptations  and  suffer- 
ings, then,  you  refuse  to  follow  them  in  confessing  Christ, 
what  will  be  your  feelings,  and  what  your  condemnation, 
when  you  stand  by  their  side,  to  hear  the  comparison  of 
your  characters,  by  your  common  Judge,  and  your  respec- 
tive correspondent  doom  !  Should  you — having  no  worse 
natures  than  they  had,  fewer  obstacles,  superior  advantages, 
and  perhaps  no  more  vicious  habits  to  surmount — should 
you  still  refuse,  how  will  that  comparison  confound  you  ! 
And  who  knows,  but  you  may  be  called  to  the  trial,  before 
another  sabbath  is  gone  ?  Who  can  tell,  but  this  very  night, 
thy  soul  shall  be  required  ? 

With  all  other  classes  of  men,  neither  openly  vicious,  nor 
destitute  of  a  secret  hope  that  they  are  the  friends  of  Christ, 
but  who  still  live  in  neglect  of  a  public  profession  of  his 
name,  we  must  seriously  expostulate.  You  say,  in,  sober 
contemplation  of  this  subject,  (and  you  say  it  by  divine  au- 
thority) "  it  is  better  not  to  vow,  than  to  vow  and  not 
pay" — But  can  you  say,  by  the  same  authority,  that  it  is 
better  neither  to  enter  into  covenant  with  God,  nor  be  sted- 
fast  in  that  covenant,  than  to  engage,  in  dependence  on  the 
grace  of  Christ,  to  be  obedient  ?  It  may  be  that  there  arc 
men.  indulging  the    hope  of  impunity,  in  the  neglect  of  thi>i 


SERMON  IX.  129 

duty.  It  may  be  there  are  some,  who  bless  themselves  in 
their  heart,  as  did  those  under  the  legal  dispensation,  who 
flattered,  themselves  that  the  charge  of  covenant-breakers 
should  never  rest  on  them — who  said,  we  shall  have  peace, 
though  we  walk  in  the  imagination  of  our  hearts.  But  re- 
collect the  answer  of  Moses. — The  anger  of  the  Lord,  and 
his  jealousy,  shall  smoke  against  that  man,  and  all  the  curses 
of  the  covenant-breaker,  though  he  vowed  not,  shall  be  up- 
on him  :  and  the  Lord  shall  blot  out  his  name  from  under 
heaven.  -Thus  must  it  be  done  unto  the  man,  whose  heart 
turns  away  from  the  covenant  of  his  God,  in  order  to  escape 
the  curse.  If  the  certain  knowledge  that  we  are  not  the 
Lord's,  will  not  excuse  us  in  the  violation  of  this  command, 
how  much  less,  will  those  doubts  and  fears  which  accompa- 
ny the  hope  that  God  is  not  ashamed  to  be  called  our  God. 
Let  us  not  forget,  that  unnecessarily  to  neglect  a  public  pro- 
fession of  Christ,  is  to  deny  him  :  and  though  it  maybe  pos- 
sible, in  some  circumstances,  without  the  ordinary  form  of 
profession,  to  confess  him,  it  is  difficult  to  conceive,  in  our 
circumstances,  of  the  existence  of  such  a  necessity.  Thus, 
beloved  hearers,  all  men  are  shut  up  to  the  faith  ;  and  all  of 
us,  to  the  profession  of  the  faith. 

Think  not  that  I  am  thus  earnest  on  this  subject,  merely 
because  it  would  give  me  pleasure  to  see  the  church  increase. 
God  forbid  !  No  man  shall  ever  accuse  me,  of  urging  on 
him  a.  profession  of  religion,  with  a  heart,  or  life,  ready  to 
contradict  it.  The  possession,  is  essential  to  the  honest  pro- 
fession of  godliness.  The  two  parts  of  duty  are  inculcated 
together  in  the  word  of  God  ;  and  presumptuous  is  the 
Teacher  who  disjoins  them  in  his  precept,  and  equally  so, 
the  professor  who  separates  them  in  his  example.  But  I 
would  be  earnest,  and,  if  possible,  excite  a  greater  earnest- 
ness in  you,  because — 
17 


130  SERMON  IX. 

III.  In  the  third  place,  the  duty  is  enforced  by  Jesus 
Christ,  with  the  most  glorious  and  awful  sanction.  To 
those  who  obey  the  command,  and  do  his  will,  the  Lord 
and  Judge  of  men,  makes  an  explicit  promise  of  glory, 
honor,  and  immortality.  To  those  who  wilfully  disobey 
snd  neglect  their  duty,  he  solemnly  proclaims  it  as  his  inten- 
tion, forever  to  reject  them.  "Whosoever,  therefore,  shall 
-confess  me  before  men,  him  will  I  also  confess,  before  my 
Father  which  is  in  heaven  ;  but  whosoever  shall  deny  me 
before  men,  him  will  I  also  deny,"  in  the  same  public,  and 
final  Judgment. 

Say  not,  then,  with  the  hope  cf  satisfying  a  good  con- 
science— say  not,  with  the  expectation  of  thus  obtaining  the 
approbation  of  honest  men — above  all,  say  not,  with  the  pre- 
sumptuous confidence,  of  honoring  and  pleasing  God  ;  that 
you  will  not,  cannot  confess  Christ,  because  you  do  not  love 
him — because  you  are  not  a  believer.  Would  it  excuse  me, 
in  your  consciences,  were  I  to  neglect  my  duty  to  you,  as  a 
minister  of  the  gospel,  all  my  life,  if  I  could  tell  you  at  last, 
that  I  never  was  a  believer  ?  Would  you  honor  me  for 
this  ?  Would  you  forgive  me  ?  Would  you  spare  me  your 
condemnation  ?  I  know  you  would  not :  I  am  conscious 
you  ought  not.  How  much  less,  on  the  same  plea,  will  the 
Judge  of  all,  excuse  the  man  who  neglects,  all  his  life,  his 
duty  to  him  !  I  tell  you,  beloved  hearer,  he  will  deny  that 
man  before  his  Father  ;  and  then,  if  never  before,  that  man 
will  feel  that  is  a  fearful  thing  to  refuse  obedience  to  a-plain 
command  of  the  living  God. 

Weigh  well,  then,  I  conjure  you,  the  import  of  these 
words.  What  is  it  to  be  denied  by  Jesus  Christ  in  the 
Father's  presence  ?  To  what  will  it  be  equivalent,  in  the 
day  of  Judgment  ?  Recollect,  the  Father  loves  the  Son, 
even  as  he  loves  himself — That  all  judgment  is  committed 
to  him — That  whom    he  commends,  the    Father   accepts ; 


SERMON  IX.  131 

whom  he  denies,  the  Father  disowns.  To  be  denied  thus,  is 
then  to  be  abhorred  of  God,  banished  from  his  presence,  and 
made  partakers  of  the  portion  and  wretchedness  of  hypo- 
crites. Yes,  the  unbeliever  must  share  the  same  doom  with 
the  hypocrite,  whom  you  so  despise.  God  detests  their 
characters  alike,  and  has  decreed  them  the  same  place. 
They  shall  share  each  other's  company,  and  in  the  future 
world,  dwell  together  without  intermission,  and  without 
end.  Are  any  of  you  prepared  for  this  ?  Can  you  delib- 
erately consent  to  be  excluded  from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord — from  the  company  of  angels — from  the  church  of 
the  first-born — from  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect ; 
and  from  God  the  Judge  of  all  ?  And  do  you  prefer  such  ( 
a  destiny,  to  the  abandonment  of  your  unbelief,  or  any  of 
the  pleasures  of  sin?  Is  a  life  of  self-denial,  sobriety, 
righteousness,  and  godliness,  less  pleasurable  than  a  life  of 
sinful  gratification,  worldliness,  and  impiety?  Is  such  to  be 
your  deliberate  preference  ?  Mourn,  then,  as  we  may, 
over  your  wretched  choice,  and  resist,  as  we  will,  the  sup- 
position of  its  rectitude,  or  impunity  ;  still,  we  must  sub- 
mit. We  can  use  no  violence  with  you,  but  that  of  ar- 
gument and  affection  :  for  man  is  free,  and  every  crea- 
ture must  choose  his  course  of  life,  and  meet'  a  corres- 
ponding fate.  To  persuade  you  to  duty,  by  turning  the 
will,  is  impossible  with  man :  but  all  things,  we  know, 
are  possible  with  God.  Who,  then,  will  confess  Christ 
before  men,  without  unnecessary  delay  ?  Who  will  come 
on  the  Lord's  side,  from  an  unbelieving  world  ?  Who 
will  profess  himself  the  friend  of  Christ  ?  Let  him  act 
with  decision,  and  in  simplicity,  and  godly  sincerity,  and 
remember,  that  Christ  commended  those  virgins  only, 
who  took  oil  in  their  vessels  with  their  lamps. 


SERMON  X. 


-•►»©#••• 


THE    CHRISTIAN     RACE. 

Hebrews  xii.  1. 

Wherefore,  seeing  we  are  compassed  about  with  so  great  a  cloud 
of  witnesses,  let  us  lay  aside  every  weight,  and  the  sin  which 
doth  so  easily  beset  us.  and  let  us  run  with  patience  the  race 
that  is  set  before  us,  looking  unto  Jesus. 

J.  HE  Olympian,  Isthmian  and  Pythian  Games,  though 
unknown  to  us,  were  subjects  familiar  to  the  people  whom 
Paul  addressed,  and  fitly  became  topics  of  frequent  allusion 
in  his  writings.  The  inhabitants  of  Greece  and  Rome  were 
fond  of  these  sports,  and  celebrated  for  their  expertness  in 
all  athletic  exercises.  Rome  being  mistress  of  the  nations 
in  the  first  age  of  Christianity,  whatever  was  interesting  in 
her  customs  and  manners  naturally  attracted  general  notice. 
It  was  wise,  therefore,  in  the  sacred  writers,  to  draw  their 
illustrations  of  religious  truth  from  customs  familiar  to  their 
contemplation  ;  and  this  is  their  reason  for  representing  the 
christian  life,  by  the  images  of  a  cross,  as  the  figure  of  its 
trials — a  combat,  as  a  picture  of  its  dangers  and  conflicts — 


SERMON  X.  133 

and  a  race,  as  the  emblem  of  its  activity.  In  the  foot-race 
here  alluded  to,  many  competitors  voluntarily  engaged.  A 
great  crowd  of  spectators,  denoted  by  the  cloud  of  witnesses, 
lined  either  side  the  course,  and  he  only  who  first  reached 
the  goal,  was  decreed  the  prize.  That  prize  consisted  in  a 
chaplet  or  crown  of  laurel,  or  some  other  evergreen,  placed 
upon  the  brow  of  the  victor,  and  in  the  acclamations  of  the 
populace.  The  christian  life  bears  some  analogy  to  this. 
There  is  a  prize  proposed  to  us.  It  is  a  crown  of  righteous- 
ness. It  is  decreed  to  him  alone,  who  engages,  against  ev- 
ery solicitor  of  his  heart,  to  devote  it  to  God,  and  by  faith 
in  things  unseen,  to  regulate  his  affections  and  his  steps, 
and  to  overcome  the  world.  To  this  enterprize  he  is  called 
by  the  gospel ;  and  to  obtain  the  prize  of  this  high  calling, 
he  is  to  keep  the  course  prescribed  by  Jesus  Christ.  For 
this  end,  he  divests  himself  of  every  incumbrance  of  flesh 
and  spirit  which  might  defeat  his  end  ;  and  labours  to  per- 
fect huliness  in  the  fear  of  God,  and  the  hope  of  immortal 
life  which  is  promised  in  Christ  Jesus.  To  him  he  is  to 
look,  as  his  forerunner,  and  model,  and  hope  ;  and  also,  as 
the  Judge  who  awards  the  prize.  While,  to  animate  and 
encourage  him  in  the  honorable  pursuit,  he  is  to  remember 
that  the  spirits  around  the  throne,  who  have  been  witnesses 
to  the  truth,  are  also  the  witnesses  of  his  exertions,  and  will 
shortly  be  the  spectators  of  his  defeat  or  triumph,  as  he  is 
slothful  in  business,  or  fervent  in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord. 
These,  if  I  mistake  not,  are  the  thoughts  suggested  by  the 
Apostle,  both  to  the  Hebrew  and  the  Corinthian  Churches, 
in  these  striking  images  ;  and  their  brief  illustration,  and  an 
argument  to  enforce  the  enjoined  duty,  will  form  the  several 
topics  of  this  discourse. 

1.  First,  and  mark  it,  hearer  !  the  christian  life  is  a  life 
of  exertion — of  holy  diligence.  From  those  strong  expres- 
sions of  the  freeness  of  salvation,  with    which    the    gospel 


134  SERMON  X. 

abounds,  the  presumptuous  mind  inters  that  all  human  ef- 
forts to  obtain  it  are  fruitless.  And  because  this  practical 
error  accords  with  the  natural  aversion  of  man  to  religion, 
and  is  congenial  to  his  slothful  habits,  this  delusive  and  fatal 
notion  has  many  advocates.  Whoever,  notwithstanding,  has 
carefully  followed  the  great  lights  of  the  Church  through 
their  pilgrimage,  examined  their  principles,  inspected  their 
conduct,  and  observed  their  spirit,  has  not  been  thus  deceived. 
God  is  not  mocked.  Human  effort,  mighty,  and  persever- 
ing, he  commands ;  and  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall 
he  also  reap.  Wo,  therefore,  to  him  who  is  at  ease-in  Zion. 
All  christian  example,  as  well  as  precept,  assures  us,  that 
to  work  out  our  salvation,  is  no  less  necessary  than  to  ago- 
nize to  enter  the  way  of  life.  In  the  doctrine  of  Christ  too, 
we  are  taught,  that  though  grace  is  sovereign  and  free,  it  is 
not  inoperative — That  though  eternal  life  is  the  gift  of  God., 
it  is  a  life  of  service  for  God,  a  life  of  vigilance  and  a  labor 
of  love.  God  works  in  us  to  do  as  well  as  to  will,  and  im- 
parts grace  and  strength  to  his  people,  not  to  render  their 
efforts  needless,  but  to-  make  them  sure  and  availing.  Not 
to  furnish  an  excuse,  for  standing  all  the  day  idle  in  his 
vineyard,  but  to  render  their  engagedness  efficacious  to  de- 
liverance from  moral  pollution.  What  had  been  the  end  of 
the  competitor  in  the  foot  race,  had  he  declined  to  prepare 
himself,  or  refused  to  run,  because  he  perceived  that  the 
crown  was  neither  woven,  nor  merited  by  his  exertions?  Re- 
ligious truth  is  never  at  war  with  common  sense ;  and  her 
verdict  is,  that  no  man  can  make  his  calling  and  election 
sure,  who  gives  not  diligence  to  this  end.  And  for  the  same 
reason  that  the  grain  of  our  fields,  though  the  gift  of  God, 
comes  to  us  only  through  the  channel  of  man's  vigorous  en- 
terprize,  and  rational  agency.  Free,  therefore,  as  salvation 
is,  it  will  not  come  to  him  who  seeks  not  the  kingdom  of 
God  and  his  righteousness  ;  nor,  through  any  other  channel. 


SERMON  X.  135 

than  his  own  patient  continuance  in  such  seeking.  What  ! 
know  ye  not  that  in  a  race,  men  run  ;  and  that  a  man  can- 
not run  without  toil ;  nor  advance  without  continued  ef- 
fort ;  nor  reach  the  goal  without  perseverance  unto  the 
end  of  the  course  ?  Neither,  without  doing  despite  to  the 
spirit  of  grace,  can  a  christian  be  barren  and  unfruitful  in 
the  work  of  the  Lord.  Every  page  of  the  gospel  enforces 
some  duty  on  man  :  and  can  either  God  or  my  neighbor  do 
the  work  assigned  me  to  do  ?  Or  is  any  duty  performed, 
without  an  effort  of  the  mind  and  heart .?  The  christian  life, 
is  a  spiritual  journey  to  Zion — a  passing  from  one  stage  of 
pilgrimage  to  another — a  progression  in  knowledge,  and 
hope,  and  holiness — a  pressing  toward  the  mark — a  reach- 
ing forth  to  some  point  to  which  we  have  not  attained.  And 
is  all  this  practicable  without  any  exertion  .?  The  cross  we 
are  required  to  bear,  is  not,  indeed,  a  material  burden  ;  nor 
is  our  daily  self-denial,  a  literal  yoke  ;  nor  yet  our  life  a 
mere  foot-race  :  but  as  surely  as  the  Gymnastic  failed  of 
the  oaken  garland,  when  neglectful  of  preparing  himself  by 
abstinence  and  unguents,  or  when  he  trusted  to  those  pre- 
parations without  subsequent  application  of  his  muscular 
energy,  so  certainly  the  sinner,  if  idle,  will  fail  of  salvation 
by  Christ.  What  his  hands  find  to  do,  is  to  be  done  with 
his  might ;  and  if  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  to  be  taken  only 
by  force,  he  must  be  violent  in  the  conflict.  The  lagging- 
traveller,  and  the  slumbering  virgin,  are  in  danger.  The 
light  to  which  the  path  of  the  just  is  compared,  is  steady  in 
its  ascending  course,  and  stops  not  till  the  perfect  day. 
Cast  not  away,  christian  !  your  confidence  of  obtaining  the 
prize;  it  has  a  great  recompense  of  reward.  But  is  this  in- 
junction addressed  to  the  loiterer,  the  backslider,  the  man 
who  is  at  ease  because  he  can  do  nothing  ?  No,  they  have  no 
such  confidence  ;  or,  if  they  have,  the  sooner  it  is  cast  away 
the  more  hope  of  them.    From  this  explanation  of  the  figure 


13G  SERMON  X. 

you  have  seen,   that  without  holy  activity,  no  man  lives   the 
life  of  a  christian. 

2.  Let  us,  next,  look  upon  the  prize,  and  see  if  it  be  not 
worthy  to  animate  us  to  such  exertion.  Did  it  consist  in 
any  thing  so  little,  and  so  short  lived  as  a  wreath,  or  crown — 
Had  the  author  and  finisher  of  the  faith  toiled  and  died,  to 
secure  to  his  followers  dominion  over  a  few  millions  of  acres, 
and  pledged  them  only  a  cap  of  gold,  in  token  of  the  right 
to  receive  homage  from  a  promiscuous  company  of  well  and 
ill-dressed  sinners,  the  prize  were  unworthy  one  moment's 
solicitude  ;  and  one  painful  step  to  obtain  it,  would  be  dis- 
proportionate to  the  reward  in  a  creature  struggling  for  im- 
mortality. Blessed  be  the  God  and  Father  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  such  is  not  the  crown,  suspended  on  our  obe- 
dience to  the  gospel.  Compared  with  it,  the  diadem  of 
Alexander  and  the  Caesars,  are  children's  toys.  'Tis  intel- 
lectual and  moral  glory,  hearers  ! — a  crown  of  righteous- 
ness— for  which  you  are  to  run.  It  is  an  empire  over  the 
world  within,  and  a  superiority  to  the  world  without.  It  is 
a  seat  on  the  throne  of  the  Prince  of  peace  ;  and  alliance 
with  all  the  nations  of  the  redeemed.  It  is  a  kingdom — and, 
unlike  all  others,  one  which  can  never  be  subverted  ;  and 
for  which,  when  you  have  received  it,  you  serve  God  with 
religious  reverence  and  holy  fervor.  All  other  crowns  are 
subject  to  irreverence  while  worn,  fade  and  decay  with 
time,  sit  heavy  on  the  head  of  the  wearer,  and  never,  no, 
never  reward  the  labor  of  earning — never  compensate  the 
disquietude  of  maintaining  :  and  after  all,  like  the  plumage 
of  the  vain  and  empty  bird,  they  must  be  shed.  The  crown 
of  righteousness,  on  the  contrary,  derives  its  glory  from  its 
intrinsic  worth.  Such,  christian  !  is  the  prize,  of  your  high 
calling  in  Christ.  Tell  me  if  it  be  unworthy  the  solicitude 
and  active  zeal,  which  its  authorized  expectation  demands  .? 

3.  But  who  is  emulous  of  a  glory  such  as  this  ?  Who  of 


SERMON  X.  137 

this  assembly  would  wear  that  crown  ?  Let  him,  in  the 
third  place,  lay  aside  every  weight,  and  renounce  every  sin, 
however  strongly  and  easily  it  beset  him,  and  follow  after 
that  for  which  he  is  apprehended  of  Christ,  with  unabating 
diligence.  For,  whoever  runs,  like  the  Apostle,  not  as  un- 
certainly, or  fights,  not  as  one  beating  the  air,  strips  himself 
of  every  incumbrance  ;  brings  his  body  into  subjection,  and 
every  high  thought  and  imagination  which  exalts  itself 
against  the  knowledge  of  God,  and  dies  daily  ;  the  world  is 
crucified  to  him,  and  he  unto  the  world. 

In  the  Isthmian  game,  the  course  was  marked  out  for  the 
racers  by  other  hands,  and  not  dictated  by  their  wishes,  or 
views  of  propriety  ;  and  no  deviation  from  it  was  admissible. 
Equally  well  defined,  and  equally  fatal  a  deviation  from  it, 
is  the  path  of  life,  prescribed  by  Jesus  Christ.  Our  will 
and  wisdom,  is  neither  concerned  in  settling  it,  nor  in  an 
attempt  to  mend.  It  is  not  to  be  conformed  to  the  views  of 
the  world,  but  the  world  are  to  be  transformed,  by  the  re- 
newing of  their  minds,  to  prove  what  is  the  good  and  accept- 
able and  perfect  will  of  God.  We  are  to  take  the  christian 
course,  the  high-way  of  holiness,  as  it  is  marked  out  in  the 
gospel ;  and  to  keep  it  scrupulously,  in  defiance  of  every  as- 
sault, in  disregard  of  every  human  project  to  shorten  or  fa- 
cilitate the  way.  From  the  word  of  God  we  may  diminish 
nothing  ;  to  its  testimony,  add  nothing.  The  bounds  are 
fixed  ;  and  be  the  popular  delusion  what  it  may,  and  exten- 
sive as  it  will,  he  will  not  be  crowned  who  dares  to  alter  the 
direction,  or  abridge  the  course.  Throw  off,  then,  your  rea- 
soning pride,  whence  cometh  contention  ;  and  receive  the 
kingdom  of  God  as  a  little  child.  He  is  not  a  follower  of 
Christ,  who  makes  his  own  system  of  doctrine,  and  precept, 
and  consolation,  and  sanctions  :  nor  he  who  seeks,  or  re- 
ceives, honor  from  men,  instead  of  that  which  comes  from 
God  only.  The  single  eye  must  precede,  and  accompany 
18 


138  SERMON  X. 

all  our  steps,  or  we  are  beguiled  from  the  simplicity  which 
is  in  Christ.  Undiverted  by  other  objects,  and  regardless 
of  the  devices  of  competitors,  nothing  remains  to  impede  our 
progress.  Thus  moved  and  governed,  the  scandals  of  pro- 
fessors, the  multiplicity  of  sects,  the  maxims,  and  habits,  and 
customs  of  the  church,  and  the  world,  the  suggestions  of  the 
flesh,  and  the  fiery  darts  of  the  adversary,  will,  neither  in 
their  single  nor  combined  influence,  be  able  to  turn  us  aside 
or  obstruct  our  way. 

Part  then,  cheerfully,  with  whatever  encumbers  you,  with- 
out delay,  and  run  the  race  set  before  you  in  the  gospel.  Is 
it  the  love  of  the  world  ?  God  dwells  not  in  the  same  bosom 
with  Mammon.  Is  it  the  love  of  pleasure ?  "She  that  liv- 
eth  in  pleasure,  is  dead  while  she  liveth."  Is  it  a  careful- 
ness and  trouble  of  heart  about  many  things  ?  But  one 
thing  is  needful.  Is  it  the  perplexities  of  business,  en- 
croaching on  the  hours  of  devotion — the  intrusion  of  friends 
— the  entanglements  of  worldly  relatives,  occupying  the 
place  which  is  assigned  to  God,  and  attendance  on  his  or- 
dinances ?  Is  it  the  -  desire  of  riches,  or  the  engrossing 
thoughts  of  the  benefits  which  their  acquisition  would  afford? 
Is  it  any  work  of  castle-building,  which  thrusts  present  duty 
from  your  solicitude,  and  finds  you  boasting  of  to-morrow, 
and  diverting  your  mind  from  the  course  to  the  goal.  Be  it 
what  it  may,  it  must  be  laid  aside,  and  left  behind.  Search 
every  man  for  his  own  incumbrances.  What  are  yours,  am- 
bitious christian  !  what  but  goads,  which  wound  you  in  the 
face,  and  check  your  progress  ;  instead  of  that  thirst  for  the 
waters  of  life,  which  inflames  desire,  and  urges  on  your  pace  ? 
Of  this  nature  are  those  emulations  and  strifes,  which,  under 
the  pretext  of  duty  to  the  public,  or  your  earthly  relations, 
prevent  you  from  fulfilling  the  duties  of  your  relation  to  God. 
Such  also,  in  its  nature  and  tendency,  is  that  deference  to 
the  opinions  of  your  neighbors,  which,  instead  of  keeping 


SERMON  X.  139 

you  from  temptation,  leads  you  into  it  with  diminished  power 
to  surmount  it.  O  !  when  will  you  reach  the  goal,  if  3'ou 
have  first  to  gain  the  consent  of  all  around  you  to  the  ne- 
cessity of  keeping  the  vale  of  christian  humility  ?  Farewell, 
ambitious  christian  !  we  shall  never  see  your  face  in  heaven. 

1  turn  to  the  unstable  and  unsettled  christian — always 
halting  between  two  opinions — whose  incumbrances  are 
found  in  those  endless  speculations  and  disputes  about  the 
way,  which  leave  him  no  time  to  walk  in  it ;  which  occupy 
the  space  assigned  him  for  working  out  his  own  salvation. 
Yours,  unhappy  man  !  is  a  dead  weight,  and  a  fruitless 
work — a  busy  idleness — a  contest  for  the  skeleton  of  reli- 
gion, which  destroys  the  appetite  for  the  "  sincere  milk  of 
the  word" — the  nutriment  by  which  we  grow.  It  is  that 
critical  spirit,  which  makes  all  the  sermons  you  hear  minis- 
ter to  your  vanity,  rather  than  to  godly  edifying.  "  Ephraim 
is  a  silly  dove,  without  heart"  in  his  religious  course. 

What  are  your  incumbrances,  latitudinarian  christian  ! 
but  the  lethargic  fruits  of  a  spurious  Catholicism  ;  which, 
embracing  every  error  as  innocent,  and  every  creature  as  an 
heir  of  heaven,  leaves  you  secure  in  sinful  indifference  to  the 
essential  truths  and  duties  of  Christianity  ?  Rouse  yourself 
from  your  apathy,  by  adopting  the  infallible  adage,  "no 
cross,  no  crown." 

Irresolute  christian  !  you  too,  are  incumbered.  A  reli- 
gious lassitude  sinks  the  spirit  of  active  goodness  to  pusil- 
lanimous weakness,  makes  duty  to  God  a  drudgery,  and 
leaves  you  lagging  behind  every  pilgrim,  or  lurking  in  bye- 
paths  as  if  there  were  a  lion  in  the  way. 

And  what  are  your  incumbrances,  self-sufficient  and  indo- 
cile christian  !  but  a  conceit  of  wisdom  which  even  God's 
appointed  ordinances  cannot  augment,  and  which  leaves  you, 
from  year  to  year,  without  any  advances  in  knowledge,  in 
humility,  or  any  other   grace  ?     Of  every  such  candidate. 


140  SERMON  X. 

says  the  oracle  of  God,  "  there  is  more  hope  of  a  fool   than 
of  him." 

To  give  every  man  his  portion,  1  turn  to  the  formal  and 
mechanical  religionist,  with  the  same  enquiry — What  are 
your  incumbrances,  unenvied  man  !  always  regular,  but  al- 
ways unaffected — the  organs  of  the  body  ever  in  place,  and 
moving  to  fulfil  their  office,  but  the  heart  never  moved  ? 
What  but  a  chill,  frosty  state  of  soul,  from  which  the*  vital 
fluid  goes  forth  to  fulfil  its  round,  but  with  such  a  defect  of 
impetus,  as  to  furnish  ground  for  alarm,  lest  it  should  never 
be  able  to  creep  back  again  ?  What,  in  fact,  but  a  load  of 
fleshly  indulgences,  hanging  as  lead  upon  the  wings  which, 
like  the  eagle's,  should  be  bearing  you  toward  the  heavens  ? 

But  I  must  address  a  word  to  the  desponding  christian. 
You  too,  beloved  victim  of  over-much  sorrow  !  have  a  weight 
to  lay  aside.  Not  indeed  an  imaginary  load  ;  but,  what  is 
worse,  a  load  of  dark  imaginations,  originated  by  the 
tempter  and  accuser  of  the  brethren.  You  have  been  too 
easily  persuaded  to  a  comparison  of  yourself  with  livelier 
christians,  rather  than  with  the  word  of  God.  You  have 
been  looking  at  the  degree,  instead  of  the  nature  of  your  af- 
fections. Put  away  that  brooding  over  your  impotence  and 
infirmities,  by  which,  instead  of  cherishing,  you  quench, 
the  little  spark  of  life  within  you.  A  cheerful  heart  does 
good  like  a  medicine.  Chide  }'our  desponding  spirit,  with 
the  man  of  God — "Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ? 
Why  are  thou  disquieted  within  me  ?"  Turn  away  from 
that  melancholy  spectre,  by  means  of  which,  the  spirit  of 
the  deep  envelopes  your  path  in  mists,  to  keep  off  your  eyes 
from  the  sufficiency  which  is  in  Christ.  Cursed  spirit ! 
which  leads  you,  by  false  application  of  texts  and  provi- 
dences, to  deny  or  pervert  the  truth  ;  and  converts  merciful 
corrections  and  reproofs,  into  demonstrative  evidence  that 
God  has  forsaken  you.      Let  him  no  longer  despoil  you  of 


SERMON  X.  141 

the  christian  armor — the  shield  of  faith,  the  helmet  of  salva- 
tion, and  the  sword  of  the  spirit — nor  further  stay  your  steps, 
by  means  of  a  self-interpreting  spirit ;  but  allow  the  word 
of  God  to  be  its  own  interpreter. 

Recur  now,  a  moment,  to  the  significant  figure  in  the 
text,  and  say,  if  any  man,  running  in  the  race,  would  load 
himself  with  weights,  cumbrous  and  discouraging  like  these  ? 
Does  he  not,  rather,  cast  away  every  garment  which  decen- 
cy can  spare  ;  much  more,  the  heavy  ornaments  of  his  per- 
son ;  and  even  fdlet  down  his  hair,  lest,  by  his  speed,  it  be 
wreathen  about  his  eyes,  obscure  his  vision,  and  expose  him 
to  stumble  or  to  lose  his  way.  Thus  wise,  be  ye,  children 
of  light  !  in  your  generation  ;  and  while  your  feet  are  shod 
with  the  preparation  of  the  gospel  of  peace,  let  your  whole 
heart  be  engaged  ;  and,  undiverted  by  any  thing  around 
you,  be  sober  and  hope  to  the  end,  for  the  grace  which  is  to 
be  brought  unto  you,  at  the  revelation  of  the  Lord  from 
heaven  :  not  fashioning  yourselves  after  the  former  lusts,  in 
your  ignorance  ;  but  "  as  he  who  has  called  you  is  holy,  so 
be  ye  holy  in  all  manner  of  conversation." 

But  these  incumbrances  are  not  all;  nor,  thanks  be  to 
God,  are  they  found  resting  upon  all.  Yet  who  is  there 
without  an  easily  besetting  sin  ?  If  escaped  from  all  the  pol- 
lutions which  are  in  the  world,  through  the  lusts  which  have 
been  noticed,  are  you  all  wholly  clean,  and  pure  from  your 
sin  ?  Have  you  made  your  way  perfect,  according  to  the 
measure  of  the  stature  of  Chrst  ?  Stripped  of  every  thing 
else,  if  you  spare  one  bosom  sin,  you  hazard  the  loss  of  all 
things  :  and  this  you  ivill  spare  if  you  do  not  detect  it.  JTis 
not  enough  that  others  discover  it,  if  its  lurking  place  be 
concealed  from  you.  What  then  is  that  iniquity,  professed 
enemy  of  all  iniquity,  and  zealous  friend  of  good  works  ! 
which  you  commit  so  easily,  you  cannot  tell  how,  so  com- 
monly you  know  not  when  ?  In   the  Apostle's  time,  it  seems 


142  SERMON  X. 

to  have  been  a  sin   common  to  the  Church,  and  to  believers 
without  the   Church.      It    led  Nicodemus,   and    Nathaniel, 
and  many  others,  to   confess  Christ   only  in   the  dark  ;  not 
openly,  for  fear  of  the  Jews.     The  dread  of  persecution,  or 
the   distrust  of  God's  faithfulness  to  his  promises,  in  which 
that  dread  originated,  beset  them  ?  But  are  you  afraid  of  the 
world's  scofl*  ? — Cannot  you  bear  to  be  their  jest  and  song  ? — 
Are  you  ashamed  of  the  gospel  of  Christ,  and  of  a  practical 
adherence  to  its  strictest  precepts,  lest  you  should  be  thought 
singular,  precise,  and  superstitious  ?    What  is  the  sin  which 
easily  besets  us  ;  or  is  the  church  so  pure  that  such    an  evil 
no  longer  exists  ?  Whatever  it  be,  common  or  peculiar,  ap- 
ply to  it  the  language  of  the  vine  dresser — "  cut  it  down" — 
let  it    no  longer   shade   the  plants  of  righteousness.     Spare 
not   a    natural   branch,   nor  trunk,  nor   a  fibre  of  the  root. 
With    some  professing    christians    it  is  selfishness  ;  but  the 
temper  of  Christ's    followers   is  benevolence.     With  many, 
this  generic  sin   exhibits   itself  in   covetousness  ;  but  this  is 
idolatry,  and  no   idolater  wins   the  crown,  or   wears  it.     In 
others,  it  betrays  itself  through  a  habit  of  slander,  and  rash 
judgment ;  but  he  who  shall  dwell  in  the  hill  of  the  Lord, 
"backbiteth  not  with  his  tongue,  nor  taketh  up  a  reproach 
against  his  neighbor."  He  who  judgeth  his  brother,  is  not  a 
doer  of  the  law,  but  its    transgressor.     With  some,  it  is  a 
high  look,  and  a   proud  heart ;  but  it   is  the  poor  in  spirit, 
whom  the  high   and   lofty  One    resolves  to  crown.     It  may 
be,   with  many  it  is,  a  habit  of  religious  sloth — of  spiritual 
slumber.     Instead  of  Christ's  righteousness,  of  which  such 
make  an  empty  boast,  this  habit  will   clothe  a  man   in  rags. 
Lukewarmness  in  the  christian,  is  nauseous  to   all   the  wit- 
nesses who  look   on  us   from    above,  and   excites  the  secret 
contempt,  or  suspicion,    of   all   below,  who  watch  either  for 
our  halting,  or  our  improvement.      Christian  !  be  thine  own 
accuser  and  judge,  and  not  thy  neighbor's.     Search  out  thy 


SERMON  X.  143 

bosom  sin  :  spare  it  not,  for  being  your  own  :  carry  it  to 
the  altar  of  your  Redeemer,  and  slay  it  before  him,  Ewu 
then,  one  thing  more  is  necessary  before  the  prize  is  won. 

4.  But  having  thus  entered  the  course,  and  run  well, 
you  must  endure  to  the  end,  or  you  cannot  be  saved.  In 
the  literal  race,  they  who  win,  instead  of  relaxing,  increase 
their  speed  as  they  approach  the  goal.  Christian  Constan- 
cy, or  the  patience  of  hope,  is  indispensable  to  life.  No 
matter  how  vigorous  and  prompt  in  preparation,  or  promis- 
ing the  prospects  of  the  candidate  in  his  earlier  stage,  if  he 
faint  before  he  has  finished  his  course,  the  prize  is  lost. — "  If 
any  man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall  have  no  pleasure  in  him." 
Temporary  engagedness,  and  even  superior  skill,  in  the  out- 
set, is  a  pledge  of  final  triumph  which  must  be  redeemed. 
Present  obedience,  is  the  only  infallible  proof  of  former  con- 
version. Nor  think  the  demand  of  the  whole  heart,  and  all 
the  life,  disproportionate  to  the  Saviour's  love,  or  the  disci- 
ple's reward.  The  life  of  the  christian,  no  less  than  that  of 
the  sinner,  is  but  a  vapor  ;  and  though  it  were  double  toil 
and  trouble,  it  would  seem  equally  transient  when  dissipated  : 
and  then,  how  delightful  the  consummation  !  The  prize,  not 
only  undefiled  and  uncorruptible,  but  eternal  in  the  heavens. 
And,  to  temperance  in  all  things,  is  it  too  much  to  add  pa- 
tience and  perseverance  also  ?  Many  have  yet  to  put  on  the 
sandals  :  all  have  yet  the  race  to  run.  In  the  undissembled 
language  of  the  life  then — in  the  unquestionable  fruits  of 
the  spirit — let  us  say,  we  will  subordinate  every  interest, 
suspend  every  business,  sacrifice  every  passion,  relinquish 
every  darling  object  of  pursuit,  to  accelerate  our  progress 
and  secure  our  end.  Like  the  children  of  this  world,  but 
with  nobler  aim,  let  us  watch  for  every  revolution  of  the 
wheel  of  Providence,  that  may  animate  us  to  constancy,  en- 
rich our  prospects,  and  diminish  the  causes  of  doubt ;  and 
which    may    afford   proof,  of  the    inexhaustible   resource?. 


144  SERMON  X. 

of  the  Author  of  the  faith,  and  give  additional  security  that 
the  crown,  promised  to  the  victor,  shall  be  our's. 

II.  Our  second  object  is  to  enforce  the  duty.  And  for 
this — 

1.  Consider,  first,  the  superior  advantages  of  the  com- 
petitor, in  the  christian  calling  : — the  more  glorious  prize, 
the  honorable  character  of  the  pursuit,  and  the  examples  set 
before  us.  The  oaken  garland,  and  the  laurel  wreath,  the 
silver  sceptre,  and  the  golden  crown,  are  perishable  when 
won — are  liable  to  canker,  rust,  ox  fade.  Yet  great  are  the 
hardships,  long  the  toil,,  and  discouraging  the  way,  endured 
to  obtain  them.  On  the  goal  which  terminates  the  chris- 
tian's race,  hangs  a  crown,  which  estimated,  either  accord- 
ing to  its  beauty,  cost,  or  durability,  human  science  is  unable 
to  compute,  or  comprehend.  Its  beauty,  comparable  only 
with  Christ's  excellence  which  passes  knowledge  ;  the  price 
of  it,  his  blood  ;  and,  in  duration,  lasting  as  his  Throne. 

2.  Another  advantage  of  the  christian,  over  every  world- 
ly course,  is,  that  instead  of  hardship,  in  the  pursuit,  you 
have  pleasure  ;  in  the  end,  instead  of  disappointment,  tri- 
umph. The  more  diligent  and  laborious  in  it,  the  greater 
your  refreshment ;  and  in  a  conscious  doing  of  the  Father's 
will,  and  a  finishing  his  work  with  approbation,  a  luxury  the 
world  knows  nothing  of.  While  the  way  of  transgressors  is 
hard,  all  that  is  painful  in  yours,  is  chargeable,  not  on  your 
exertion,  but  remissness.  Toil,  indeed,  you  must,  and  suffer 
too,  if  the  spirit  of  glory  and  of  God  rest  upon  your  head, 
as  well  as  the  blessing  of  many  ready  to  perish  :  but  toil  and 
trial,  are  only  an  appendage  to  your  condition;  the  glory 
and  the  joy,  result  from  the  nature  of  the  pursuit. 

3.  Over  all,  you  have  the  advantage,  not  of  uninterested, 
but  disinterested  motive.  Know  ye  not,  that' in  every  earth- 
ly career,  though  all  run,  but  one  receiveth  the  prize  f — 
That  contention  of  course,  and  envy,  and  wrath,  and  malig- 


SERMON  X.  145 

want  strife,  mingle  in  the  scene  ? — That  even  the  successful 
adventurer,  finds  the  joy  of  victory,  and  the  spoil  of  triumph, 
embittered?  Not  so  in  this  contest:  and  this  is  the  disci- 
ple's boast,  that  every  competitor  may  win  ;  and  that  the 
more  sure  he  makes  his  own  success,  the  less  is  he  in  any 
brother's  way.  No  place  is  found  for  animosity  ;  but  each, 
in  honor  preferring  one  another,  helps  on  his  rival's  joy. 
Instead  of  shouting,  and  a  sordid  triumph,  when  a  companion 
falls,  he  who  is  strong,  bears  the  infirmities  of  the  weak  ; 
and  he  who  stands,  gladly  raises  up  the  fallen,  and  encour- 
ages the  faint.  For  our  brethren's  and  companions'  sake, 
we  can  speak  comfortably  to  Jerusalem,  till  her  warfare  be 
accomplished ;  and,  because  the  household  of  the  Lord  is  one, 
still  seek  their  good.  Such  is  the  pre-eminence  of  the 
christian's  spirit — ever  breathing  good  will  to  men,  peace  in 
heaven,  and  glory  in  the  highest. 

4.  Fourthly,  whoever  obtains,  inherits,  the  crown  to  his 
own  glory.  The  wicked  are  always  in  bondage.  They  toil 
for  a  master  who  gives  them  scant  materials,  reqt  .esthe  full 
tale,  and  yet  takes  all  the  avails  of  their  labour  to  himself. 
At  vast  expense,  they  yield  the  God  of  this  world  the  honor, 
and  take  their  reward  in  drudging  at  his  back.  But  God 
our  master,  seeks  no  profit  from  our  righteousness ;  and 
whoever  cheerfully  serves  in  his  kingdom,  is  sure  to  enrich 
himself. 

6.  Finally,  my  brethren,  take  for  your  example,  in  this 
nobler  enterprize,  the  Patriarchs  and  Prophets,  whose  fidel- 
ity you  see  already  crowned  with  success.  Remember  whom 
you  follow — the  excellent  of  the  earth — men  distinguished 
for  all  that  is  heroic  in  spirit,  pure  in  intention,  and  praise- 
worthy in  action — men  beloved  in  the  very  heavens — men 
who,  having  trod  the  course  before  you,  have  smoothed  the 
way  for  your  feet — men  now  become  the  companions  of  an- 
gels, of  Jesus  our  elder  brother,  and  of  God  the  judge  of  all. 
19 


146  SERMON  X. 

O  !  shall  the  votaries  of  a  mad  ambition,   run   their  career 
with  enthusiastic  ardor,  and  rise  with  the  bird  in  daily  song 
to  compass  the  inglorious  object   of  their  toil ;  and   shall 
heaven  look  down  upon  the  heirs  of  immortality,   and  find 
them  dragging  heavily  in   the  chariot  of  salvation  ?     Seey 
christians  !  the  whole  host  of  the  faithful,  ranging  themselves 
along  the  lines  of  the  course,  eager  to  behold  your  progress. 
Imagine  yourselves  compassed  about  with  all  that  cloud  of 
noble  witnesses,  who  sealed  the  testimony   with  their  blood, 
watching  your  every  movement,  emulous  of  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you  come  off  successful,  and  ready  to  fill  the   arches 
of  heaven  with  acclamations,  and  songs   of  triumph,  as  you 
successively  complete  your  labors.      In  conformity  with  this 
grand  thought  of  the  Apostle,  imagine,  when  you   begin  to 
doubt,  distrust,  or  loiter,  that  here  stands    the   father  of  be- 
lievers, watching,  with  parental  tenderness  and  patriarchal 
dignity,  his  spiritual  offspring  of  this  generation — That  there. 
you  meet  the  eye  which  looked  with  contempt  on  the  splen- 
dor of  Pharaoh's  court,  because  he  had  respect  to  the  recom- 
pense of  the  reward — And  that  yonder,   stand   side  by   side, 
waiting  your  advancement,  the  noble  army  of  Prophets,  and. 
Evangelists,  and  Martyrs,  to  encourage  you  ;  and  the  good- 
ly company  of  the  Apostles,  who  became  all  things  for  the 
elect's  sake,  to  win  you  to  Christ;  and  who,  in  their  writings, 
still  tenderly  warn,  by  the  terrors  of  his  frown,  and   by  the 
mercies  of  God,  beseech  you,  that  you  neither  faint,  nor  re- 
ceive the  grace  of  God  in  vain.      See  how  they  stand,  reach 
forth,  and  gaze  intently,  solicitous   to   see   the  issue.     See, 
high  above  them  all,  in  the   midst   of  the  throne,    stands   a 
Lamb,  as  it  had  been  slain,  now  crowned  with  light,  a  gold- 
en censer  in  his  hand,  with  much  incense,  ready  to  be  offer- 
ed with  your  prayers  upon  the  golden  altar.     Crowns  with- 
out number  lie  around  his  feet,  for  as  many  as  are  written  in 
the  book  of  life.     He  too,  is  a  witness  to  your  faithfulness, 


SERMON  X.  147 

or  hypocrisy — He  who  led  the  glorious  way,  and  opened  the 
path  to  the  sinner's  re-ascent  to  God.  See, he  beckons  you: 
the  language  of  the  token  is,  come  up  hither.  And  will  you 
not  look  to  Jesus  ? — For  you  he  endured  the  cross,  and 
despised  the  shame.  You  must  look  to  him,  for  your  model, 
and  crown  : — To  his  mysterious  person,  and  his  more  mys- 
terious love  ;  to  his  offices,  and  his  award.  And,  having 
seen  his  glory,  and  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  prize,  say  if  you 
can  willingly  lose  sight,  and  take  leave  of  them  forever  ! 
The  remainder  of  your  course  is  short :  the  goal  is  near; 
and  the  prize  suspended  on  your  fidelity.  Do  you  not  hear 
his  voice? — "Be  thou  faithful  unto  death,  and  I  will  give 
thee  a  crown  of  life."'  "  He  that  overcometh,  shall  not  be  , 
hurt  of  the  second  death  ;  but  shall  inherit  all  things." 

What  is  your  answer  to  the  messenger  of  God  ;  or  shall 
he  leave  you  hesitating  ?  Stay,  recording  angel !  till,  from 
every  heart  in  this  assembly,  you  shall  carry  back  the  holy 
purpose  of  looking  unto  Jesus — till  each  shall  have  resolved, 
Lord,  I  will  leave  all,  and  follow  thee.  Presumptuous  hope ! 
while  there  are  so  many  here,  who  are  labouring  to  serve 
two  masters.  Too  strait  the  gate,  too  narrow  the  way  of 
life  for  them,  who  will  not  part  with  every  incumbrance. 
And  as  we  successively  quit  the  theatrical  scenes, around  us, 
how  very  few  will  be  heard  to  say — "I  have  finished  my 
course,  I  have  kept  the  faith  :  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for 
me  a  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord  the  righteous 
judge  shall  give  me  in  that  day." 

Hearers  !  though  primarily  addressed  to  the  church,  this 
subject  has  not  a  very  remote  application  to  the  world.  For 
in  the  eye  of  God,  every  man  is  a  candidate,  though  every- 
one is  not  a  competitor,  for  the  crown.  It  is  not  optional 
with  you,  as  it  was  with  the  gymnastic,  whether  your  name 
--hall  be  entered  on  the  list.  The  King  and  Lord  of  the 
whole  earth  commands  you  to  run.     By  his  authority  your 


148  SERMON  X. 

name  is  enrolled  :  you  are  on  the  course,  and  if  you  depart 
through  sloth,  prefeiring  the  way  which  a  depraved  heart 
prescribes — if,  to  drop  the  figure,  you  lead  an  unchristian 
life,  you  lose,  not  merely  a  happy  immortality,  but,  by 
trampling  on  the  remedy  for  human  guilt  and  wretchedness, 
and  despising  and  rejecting  the  crown  of  life,  incur  an  ag- 
gravated condemnation.  The  Judge  will  award  to  you  a 
resurrection,  but  it  will  be  to  shame  and  everlasting  con- 
tempt !  And  if  disgrace  be  unwelcome,  even  in  presence  of 
the  mortal  crowd  which  surrounds  you  here,  how  can  it  fail 
to  be  intolerable,  when  assembled  worlds  shall  look  on,  and 
see  you,  who  were  once  offered  the  crown,  driven  from  the 
presence  of  God,  and  the  abodes  of  the  just,  as  unfit  for  the 
company  which  you  despised.  Can  you  meditate  on  such 
a  fate,  and  not  be  appalled  ?  Can  you  anticipate  it  for 
yourself,  or  your  familiar  friend,  and  your  heart  endure  ? 
Yet  the  evidence  that  you  shall  depart  accursed,  from  the 
presence  of  your  Judge,  bears  exact  proportion  to  the  evi- 
dence, that  you  are  not  now  heartily  engaged  in  his  service, 
or  seeking,  with  all  the  heart,  the  kingdom  of  God.  If  then, 
worldly  man  !  much  of  your  life  is  already  lost— if  little,  at 
the  longest,  remain,  and  the  christian  race  require  much  as- 
siduity and  zeal ;  and  your  holy  activity  is  yet  to  be  begun — 
if,  even  to  this  very  moment,  you  are  hesitating  whether  to 
have  the  world,  or  God,  for  your  portion,  you  need  neither 
Angel  nor  Prophet,  to  assure  you,  that  you  are  neither  al- 
ready reasonably  expecting,  nor  even  in  the  way  of  obtain- 
ing, salvation.  O  !  look  off  from  the  paltry  conflicts  of  an 
ambitious,  sensual,  and  perishing  world,  and,  like  Jesus,  for 
the  joy  set  before  you,  despise  the  shame  attached  to  the 
cross  :  put  earth,  and  heaven,  and  the  prayers  of  the  church, 
in  requisition  ;  and  lay  hold  on  eternal  life.    ' 


SERMON  XT 


♦«©•« 


THE    CHRISTIAN    PILGRIM.    - 


Psalm  xxxix.  12. 


Hold  not  thy  peace  at  my  tears,  for  I  am  a  stranger   tvith  thee, 
and  a  sojourner,  as   all  my   Fathers  were. 

JL  HOSE  who  have  been  accustomed  to  attach  the  notion  of 
glory  to  condition,  and  to  consider  royalty  but  another  name 
for  happiness,  will  think  this  strange  language  for  -a  King  ! 
Even  those  of  us,  who  have  not  learned  to  feel,  when  sitting 
at  our  own  fire-sides,  and  surrounded  by  our  families,  that 
we  are  not  at  home,  may  doubt,  if  this  can  be  the  habitual 
language  of  any  man.  And  yet,  the  sentiment  it  expresses 
is  equally  just  in  its  application,  both  to  kings  and  common 
men.  The  language  employed  to  express  this  sentiment,  is 
a  perfect  picture  of  human  life.  He  is  the  child  of  fatuity, 
and  a  stranger  to  himself  and  his  condition,  who  has  not 
learned  to  feel  the  incertitude,  as  well  as  vanity,  of  human 
expectations  ;  and  to  cry  unto  God,  as  a  pilgrim  in  a  strange 
country,  who  is  ever  journeying,  and  tarrying  only  for   a 


150  SERMON  XL 

night — as  a  sojourner,  who  has  no  sooner  pitched  his  tent, 
and  begun  to  think  of  rest,  than  he  is  summoned  to  strike  it, 
and  be  gone.  Even  at  the  age  of  an  hundred  and  thirty 
years,  we  find  the  Patriarch  Jacob  numbering  the  period  of 
his  life  by  days  ;  and  comparing  the  pleasures  ofhisway,  to 
the  toilsome  stages  of  the  weary  traveller,  which  are  few  and 
evil.  To  the  illusions  of  the  world,  then,  and  not  to  the  dis- 
eased imagination  of  the  people  of  God,  are  we  to  ascribe 
their  widely  different  views  of  man,  and  the  present  state.  It 
is  a  striking  thought — God  has  so  few  friends  in  the  world, 
that  both  He,  and  they  who  walk  with  him,  are  said  to  be 
strangers  in  it.  "I  am  a  stranger  with  thee,  and  a  sojourner, 
as  all  the  Patriarchs  were." 

How  striking  the  contrast  !  The  children  of  this  world 
are  strangers  to  God,  and  the  covenant  of  promise ;  while 
the  children  of  the  kingdom,  are  hidden  ones,  and  strangers, 
in  the  world.  Behold  the  distinction  of  the  friends  of  God  ! 
They  are  but  pilgrims  in  their  own  account — they  walk  with 
God,  as  strangers  in  a  strange  country — They  seek  another, 
and  a  better,  as  their  home.  Delighting  to  exhibit  truth  by 
antithesis,  and  contrast,  and  no  subject  offering  so  great 
scope  for  such  illustration,  as  that  of  the  difference  between 
the  righteous  and  the  wicked,  we  hear  them  exclaim — 
"while  we  are  at  home  in  the  body  we  are  absent  from  the 
Lord."  "  We  walk  by  faith  and  not  by  sight."  Thus  the 
righteous  plainly  declare,  that  they  have  a  house  not  made 
with  hands.  The  friends  of  the  world,  on  the  contrary, 
here  bury  all  their  thoughts  ;  and  bend  their  exalted  powers 
to  acquisitions,  which  have  their  origin  and  end  in  time. 
They  know  not,  experimentally,  the  simplest  truths  incul- 
cated by  the  daily  providence  of  God.  Their  inward 
thought  is,  that  their  houses  shall  continife  forever  ;  and 
their  dwelling  places,  and  the  lands  called  after  their  names, 
to  all   generations.     Their  posterity  inherit  their  foil}' ;  and 


SERMON  XI.  151 

the  whole  succession  of  their  unbelieving  progeny,  walk  in 
the  obscurity  of  their  example,  and  never  see  the  light,  till 
death  begins  to  feed  on  them,  and  their  beauty  to  consume 
in  the  grave,  from  their  dwelling.  They  are  foreigners, 
only  in  relation  to  the  commonwealth  of  Israel ;  while  the 
friends  of  God,  are  strangers  here,  and  seek  the  pillar  of 
cloud  and  of  fire,  in  which  the  Shechinah  dwells,  to  guide 
them  through  the  wilderness  to  the  promised  land.  "  They 
are  not  of  the  world."  They  pursue  with  avidity  the  trea- 
sures which  cannot  rust  and  corrupt  ;  which  the  hand  of 
death  cannot  ravish,  nor  the  lapse  of  time,  or  change  of 
.state,  destroy.  Transient  visitors,  is  their  description  ; 
who,  as  sorrowful,  are  yet  always  rejoicing — who  buy  as 
though  they  possessed  not ;  and  who  use  this  world  as  not 
abusing  it.  Yes,  the  christian  uses  this  world  ;  but,  setting 
his  affections  on  things  above,  avoids  their  idolatry  who  love 
it.  He  is  a  traveller,  who  visits  necessarily  the  places  on 
his  way  home,  but  without  partaking  in  the  enthusiasm  of 
those  who  are  settled  there,  or  entangling  himself  in  their 
avocations,  and  their  contests,  or  ensnaring  himself  in  their 
schemes  of  business,  or  of  pleasure.  He  has  only  time  to 
secure  the  necessary  refreshment,  before  he  must  resume  his 
journey.  He  makes  no  permanent  interests  there,  and  takes 
up  no  possessions,  which  may  irresistibly  plead  for  his  re- 
turn from  the  advanced  posts  he  has  already  gained.  More 
than  convinced,  that  this  is  not  his  rest,  because  it  is  pollu- 
ted, with  a  heaven-directed  aim,  his  temper  and  his  conduct 
say — I  journey  to  the  land  of  my  nativity  ;  and  till  I  put  oft" 
these  travelling  habiliments,  my  marred  and  tattered  aspect 
tells  me,  I  have  not  yet  attained,  and  urge  me  onward  to  my 
Father's  house.  Thus  do  our  sacred  guides  teach  us  to  as- 
certain our  character,  relations,  and  destiny,  as  spiritual  be- 
ings, by  an   inspection  of  the  conduct  of  the    home-bound 


152  SERMON  XI. 

traveller,  who   wandered,   almost  in  infancy,  from  the  em- 
braces of  a  parent  into  a  foreign  land. 

Let  us  suppose  him,  in  the  first  place — however  long  he 
has  lived  abroad,  however  dear  has  become  the  place  of  his 
early  life,  and  close  his  alliances — resolving  to  return  to  the 
distant  country  of  his  birth,  and  now  commencing  his  jour- 
ney. How  many  conflicting  passions,  and  interests,  must 
agitate  his  bosom  !  What  emotions  must  accompany  the 
thought  of  taking  leave  of  the  spot,  the  concerns,  the  com- 
panions of  his  early  years,  and  all  the  objects  fondly  cher- 
ished, through  his  inconsideration  of  this  removal  !  But  he 
has  resolved  :  he  has  weighed  the  advantages  of  the  change. 
Duty  to  the  author  of  his  life,  and  the  interests  covered  by 
the  paternal  roof,  have  cast  the  die,  and  his  purpose  is  fixed. 
"  I  will  arise  and  go  to  my  father."  He  has  tasted  the  bit- 
terness of  sin,  felt  the  pang  of  separation  from  his  God;  and 
the  insufficiency  of  all  things,  to  supply  the  place  of  his  ap- 
probation. He  has  heard  of  the  land,  none  of  whose  inhab- 
itants say  I  am  sick  ;  and  of  the  river  of  the  water  of  life, 
proceeding  from  the  throne  of  God.  He  has  been  shown 
the  promise  of  the  proprietor,  that  the  inheritance  is  for  the 
returning  prodigal,  through  the  intercession  of  the  obedient 
Son  ;  and  is  sure  to  all  who  seek  it  "  by  patient  continuance 
in  well  doing."  Men  who  are  journeying  to  the  place,  of 
which  the  Lord  has  spoken,  encourage  him.  He  has  sur- 
veyed, impartially,  the  fruits  of  obedience  and  sin  :  the  gifts 
of  this  world  and  the  next  are  compared  ;  and  the  choice, 
between  the  portions,  is  made.  He  has  made  trial  of  his 
willingness  to  relinquish  all  his  early  prepossessions  and 
habits,  for  the  kingdom  of  God.  After  many  violent  strug- 
gles, he  has  thrown  himself  into  the  scale  against  selfishness 
and  the  world,  resolved  to  strip  himself  of  every  incum- 
brance, and,  in  the  path  ot'  life,  set  his  face  towards  Zion. 
Governed  by  the  maxim,  that  no  wise' man   begins   a  work 


SERMON  XI.  15'3 

till  he  has  counted  the  cost,  he  has  not  commenced  his  jour- 
ney without  ascertaining",  both  the  character  of  the  celestial 
country,  and  the  way  to  it.  The  difficulties  of  that  way 
have  also  been  considered,  and  the  prospect  of  ample 
strength  to  surmount  them,  and  more  than  ample  compensa- 
tion for  his  labours  in  the  end.  Thus  far  the  analogy  is 
perfect.  For  does  not  even  he,  who  removes  only  from  one 
part  of  the  same  continent  to  another,  first  inform  himself  of 
the  character  of  the  people,  the  quality  of  the  soil,  the  tem- 
perature of  the  climate,  the  facilities  of  the  country,  that  the 
end  of  his  removal  may  be  secured  ?  Will  he  resolve  to 
proceed,  without  knowing  the  sacrifices  he  may  be  called  to 
make  ;  and  whether  his  resources  may  be  depended  on,  as 
adequate  to  his  needs  ?  Does  he  rationally  hope  to  succeed 
in  his  project,  without  adapting  means  to  ends  ;  and  con- 
forming to  the  rules,  necessary  to  render  safe  and  sure  the 
hope  of  accomplishing  the  end  ?  Does  a  man  think  of  trav- 
elling in  state,  in  a  way  which  admits  only  of  the  attire  and 
stan"  of  a  pilgrim  ?  Will  he  make  no  provision  to  secure 
himself  against  defeat  ?  Then  must  he  abandon  the  enter- 
prize,  or  perish  by  the  way.  Thus  you  see,  every  thing  de- 
pends upon  setting  out  right,  if  we  are  going  to  heaven. 
Faith  in  God,  and  the  security  of  his  aid,  is  the  -first  step. 
Without  this,  the  traveller  towards  Zion  will  assuredly  faint, 
and  all  his  labour  will  be  lost,  and  his  expectations  be  cut 
off.  There  be  many,  who  shall  seek  to  enter  in,  but  shall 
not  be  able.  Think  not  that  you  can  dispense  with  those 
thorough  investigations  of  sacred  truth,  which  correspond 
only  with  the  zeal  and  sincerity  of  the  man,  who  is  about  to 
remove  to  another  continent.  Think  not,  that  a  depraved 
creature  may  easily  and  carelessly  make  up  his  mind,  to  b<j 
a  follower  of  Christ,  to  renounce  his  sins,  and  the  world,  for 
heaven.  No!  Acquaint  thyself  with  Goo.  Understand 
20 


154  SERMON  XI. 

the  nature  of  the  christian  salvation.  Know  what  heaven  is, 
what  is  duty,  and  that  nothing  but  the  performance  of  duty, 
in  humble  dependence  on  Christ,  can  bring-  us  to  its  enjoy- 
ment. Secure  an  infallible  guide,  to  the  good  old  way  of 
the  Patriarchs  and  Apostles.  Possess  yourself  of  their  un- 
conquerable spirit  of  devotedness  to  one  object — God  and  his 
kingdom.  Rely  not  on  information,  acquired  by  the  way- 
side :  seek  it  of  him  who  cannot  lie — whose  word  is  faithful 
—not  one  promise,  or  testimony  of  which,  shall  fail.  Re- 
collect the  end  of  them,  who  have  depended  on  an  arm  of 
flesh,  and  been  the  sport  of  men,  whose  tender  mercies  are 
cruelty.  The  man  who  is  to  pass  through  the  dominions  of 
Princes  of  different  character,  and  interests ;  and  through 
deserts,  where  rapacious  animals  of  different  devices  reign, 
must  know  from  unquestionable  sources,  the  laws,  customs, 
exactions,  and  dangers  of  the  country  ;  and  possess  a  char- 
acter, and  an  armour,  which  shall  secure  his  person  from 
ruin,  and  defeat  the  devices  of  the  crafty,  as  well  as  over- 
come the  powerful,  and  those  who  lie  in  wait  to  devour. 
Then,  if  he  go  forward  with  humility,  and  trembling,  it  is 
also  with  the  fairest  prospect  of  reaching  the  place  of  his  desa- 
lination. He  goes,  guarded  against  surprize — every  thing* 
subordinated  to  the  main  design,  he  has  no  backward  track 
to  pursue — and,  with  the  whole  armor  of  God,  he  is  pre- 
pared for  untried  dangers  and  conflicts.  He  is  not  soon  dis- 
couraged, because  of  the  way.  Trial  worketh  patience,  and 
victory  inflames  his  resolution.  The  falls  of  the  unwalehful 
hour,  quicken  his  vigilance  ;  and  every  snare,  detention,  and 
injury,  excite  his  circumspection,  and  a  more  faithful  obser- 
vance of  his  instructions. .  So,  the  literal  traveller,  turns  off 
his  eyes  from  the  vanities  which  tempt  his  delay ;  and  in- 
stead of  loitering,  or  resting,  while  it  is  day,  to 'crop  the  way- 
side flowers,  or  gather  the  fruits  which  are  not  his  own, 
moves  forward,  turning  neither  to  the  right  hand  nor  to  the 


SERMON  XL  155 

left ;  remembering  that  the  same  zeal  is  necessary  at  the 
dose,  as  at  the  beginning  of  the  way. 

Is  the  traveller  to  Zion  tempted  to  indulge  in  unnecessary 
refreshment,  and  to  languish  in  the  race  ?  His  guide  cries 
aloud — "Let  us  fear,  lest  a- promise  being  left  us  of  entering 
into  his  rest,  we  should  seem  to  fall  short  of  it." — "If  any 
man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall  have  no  pleasure  in  him." 
What  avails  it  to  begin  well,  if  we  are  afterwards  willing  to 
be  hindered  ?  Pure  and  undefiled  religion,  not  only  at  first 
renounces,  but  keeps  unspotted  from,  the  world.  We  may 
fee!  perplexed,  but  not  forsaken;  and  harrassed,  but  we  may 
not  despair.  Faint  but  persevering,  is  the  pilgrim's  song, 
till  the  last  enemy  is  overtaken,  the  last  obstacle  surmount- 
ed, and  the  last  river  passed.  So  the  christian  finds  an  an- 
tidote to  the  voice  of  curiosity  and  sympathy,  of  flattery 
and  despondency,  by  keeping  his  Father's  house  in  view. 
The  caresses  of  the  indolent,  would  turn  him  aside  from  the 
path  ;  and  the  plausible  story  of  the  carnal  interpreter, 
check  the  vigor  of  pursuit ;  but  he  meets  them  with  reproof, 
and  tells  them,  as  he  passes,  of  resting  when  he  gets  home. 
He  has  pity  and  help  for  his  weary  fellow-traveller,  but  he 
cannot  wait  the  movement  of  the  slothful,  nor  vacillate  with 
the  unstable,  nor  uphold  those  who  dally  with  temptation, 
and  listen  to  evil  men  and  seducers.  Though  he  faints  for 
them  as  he  passes  by,  he  dare  not  imitate,  lest  he  fall  after 
the  same  example  of  unbelief.  He  hears  the  christian  vir- 
tues reproached,  from  time  to  time,  even  by  those  who  think 
themselves  travelling  in  the  same  way ;  but  recurring  to  his 
directory,  he  learns  a  lesson  of  perseverance  from  his  mis- 
taken friends.  What  are  their  opinions  and  doings  to  the 
precept — "follow  thou  me." 

But  man  has  a  social  nature  ;  and,  whether  good  or  bad — 
whether  in  the  way  to  heaven  or  hell — he  is  not  fond  of 
travelling  alone.      The  christian  pilgrim  labors  to  promote 


156  SERMON  XI. 

in  others,  a  spirit  of  emigration  to  the  heavenly  land.  His 
choice  is  not  dependant  on  the  will  of  a  capricious  world, 
nor  his  success  with  others,  the  condition  of  proceeding  him- 
self. While  independently  resolved,  and  cautious  of  so  re- 
garding others,  as  to  neglect  his  duties  to  himself,  it  is  still 
his  heart's  desire,  and  prayer  to  God,  and,  of  consequence, 
his  labor,  to  persuade  a  numerous  company  to  go  with  him. 
It  is  a  darling  object,  to  multiply  associates  in  the  enter- 
prize.  He  feels,  in  them,  the  dangers  and  the  deaths  he  has 
escaped  ;  and  generously  says — "  now  toe  live,  when  you" 
resolve,  and  "stand  fast  in  the  Lord."  By  cheerful  toil, 
expostulation  and  example,  as  well  as  prayer,  he  strives  to 
engage  those  by  the  way-side,  to  put  in  their  lot  with  him ; 
and  take  freely,  all  the  advantage  of  his  experience,  on  the 
subjects  of  this,  and  the  better  country — of  the  God  of  this 
world,  and  the  God  who  is  above.  He  recommends  the 
country  and  the  way,  the  business  and  the  blessedness,  of 
the  inhabitants;  and  endeavors  to  prove  that  godliness,  with 
little  of  this  world,  is  gain  ;  and  is  careful  to  exemplify  the 
truth  he  inculcates,  by  the  better  character  and  the  better 
hopes,  the  higher  aims,  and  the  more  adequate  consolations 
it  has  wrought  in  him,  over  the  children  of  this  world.  Suc- 
cessful or  not,  he  has  the  peaceful  reflection,  that  their  loss 
who  despise,  is  not  to  be  charged  on  his  negligence  ;  and  this 
is  a  better  source  of  peace  than  the  world  can  offer,  in  the 
extremest  latitude  of  its  lying  promises.  O  !  to  walk  in 
wisdom  toward  them  who  are  without — to  be  no  occasion  of 
their  stumbling,  is  in  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity,  and 
by  the  grace  of  God,  to  have  our  conversation  among  the 
world.  "Tis  then,  sinners  fall  not  on  the  rock,  but  the  power 
of  Christianity  falls  on  them  ;  and  they  have  no  cloak  for 
their  rejection  of  its  Author,  and  resistance  of  the  influence 
of  his  religion. 

Like  every  other  peaceable  traveller,  the  christian  pilgrim 


SERMON  XL  lo7 

is  careful  of  falling  out  with  his  brethren  by  the  way.  The 
fruits  of  righteousness  are  sown  in  peace  :  they  are  nurtured, 
and  matured  under  the  same  influence.  No  love  of  discord 
invades  the  bosom  of  Christ's  disciples.  Their  hearts,  and 
hopes,  and  pursuits,  are  united,  and  cannot  be  interrupted 
without  violence  to  a  holy  nature,  and  a  common  head  and 
guide.  Peaceable,  pure,  gentle,  and  not  easily  provoked  or 
alienated,  are  the  friends  of  God.  Contentions  and  strife, 
come  not  from  above.  Where  the  grand  object  keeps  its 
ascendancy,  the  minor  currents  are  absorbed,  and  all  roll  on 
together  to  the  ocean  of  love.  If  any  choose  the  unmarked 
road,  he  can  only  refer  them  to  the  common  guide,  and  pursue 
his  way,  though  it  be  in  the  fear  he  shall  see  their  face  no  more. 
The  soothing  voice  of  affection,  and  not  the  roaring  of  the 
lion,  is  the  well  known  voice  of  Israel's  Shepherd.  Peace 
and  holiness  united,  constitute  the  favorite  breath  of  this 
Shepherd's  pipe.  Palse  is  the  friendship  which  allures  us 
by  any  other  sound.  "  Blessed  is  the  peace-maker,"  with- 
out unhallowed  passions,  and  sinister  designs. 

Finally,  progress  is  the  traveller's  grand  attainment.  If 
home  is  the  object,  advancement  must  be  the  effect.  Who 
regards  the  clouds  and  the  winds,  when  solicitous  for  horned 
Or,  if  arrested  in  his  journey,  and  subjected  to  the  loss  of  a 
day,  see  how  such  an  one  prevents  the  morning  dawn,  and 
evening  shade,  and  encroaches  on  the  hour  of  repose,  till  he 
have  redeemed  the  time.  His  diligence  and  activity  increas- 
ing, as  the  object  approaches  its  accomplishment ;  and  when 
he  comes  near  the  spot  where  he  is  to  spend  all  his  existence, 
see  how  he  forgets  his  toils,  and  gives  a  loose  to  rapturous 
joy.  Must  not  the  child  of  God  then,  on  every  glimpse  of 
his  Father's  residence,  spring  forward  with  accelerated  move- 
ment, in  grace  and  knowledge,  till  he  enter  into  the  joy  of 
his  Lord  !  To  pass  to  the  transforming  sight  of  his  Redeem- 
er, from  amid  the   changes,  and   conflicts,  of  this   state  of 


15S  SERMON  XL 

poverty,  and  sin,  and  darkness — this,  this  is  life  and  immor- 
tality possessed.  And  shall  not  he  who  has  it  in  reversion, 
be  supposed  to  reach  after  it  eagerly  ;  and  press  to  the  mea- 
sure of  the  stature  of  the  fulness  of  Christ?  Yes,  this  must 
be  the  purpose  of  the  heart- — this,  the  prize  of  the  high  call- 
ing of  God. 

Having  concluded  the  illustration  of  the  christian  charac- 
ter, under  the  figure  of  a  pilgrim  in  a  strange  country,  re- 
turning to  his  resting  place,  and  his  home — 

1.  Let  us  ask  ourselves,  hearers  !  if  the  image  be  a  just, 
one  ?  Is  it  true,  that  our  present  state  is  unfixed,  unsettled — 
that  we  have  in  our  wishes  no  continuing  city  here,  nor 
abiding  place  ?  Is  every  thing  precarious  and  transient  but 
truth  ;  and  does  the  word  of  God  live  and  abide  forever,  as 
the  only  vehicle  of  truth  to  the  children  of  men  ?  If  it  be 
thus — and  who  will  venture  his  honor,  and  his  honesty,  on 
the  denial  of  it — then  who  but  the  rcalf'm  opposition  to  the 
nominal  disciple  of  Christ,  as  well  as  to  the  men  of  mere 
business,  and  the  votaries  of  this  world's  God,  have  any 
claim  to  wisdom,  virtue,  or  expectation  of  enjoyment  r  Who 
but  the  man  who  is  a  stranger  to  the  affections,  the  desir'ejs, 
and  the  chief  objects  which  form  the  main  spring  of  all  the 
movements  of  this  great  world,  discovers  any  regard  to 
truth  ?  Who  besides,  possesses  a  character,  corresponding, 
in  any  of  its  moral  features,  with  his  relations  to  God,  with 
his  present  condition,  or  with  his  future  prospects  ?  Not  one. 
The  inspired  description,  is  perfectly  conformed  to  our  own 
observation — "  They  are  all  gone  out  of  the  way  :  there  is 
none  that  doeth  good  ;  there  is  none  that  enquireth  after 
God."  "  Man  that  is  in  honor  and  understandeth  not,  is 
like  the  beasts  that  perish."  He  lives,  as  ,if  incapable  of 
knowing  that  he  is  to  die ;  and  dies,  as  if  death  were  an 
everlasting  sleep.  He  perverts  the  gift  of  God,  as  if  happi- 
aess  were  only  to  be  found  at  the  greatest  distance  from  its 


SERMON  XI.  159 

source.     Lord,  what  is  man,  that  thou  art  mindful  of  him  -f 
and  the  son  of  man,  that  thou  visitest  him  ! 

2.  If  there  are  men  in  the  world,  who  are  not  of  the 
world,  but  exhibit,  in  the  midst  of  it,  the  character  of  stran- 
gers and  sojourners  merely  ;  and  who  therefore  essentially 
differ  from  others,  as  Christ  differed,  by  having  their  hearts, 
their  treasures,  and  their  conversation,  in  heaven  ;  is  it  not 
obvious,  as  one  distinct  class  of  christians  have  always  con- 
tended, that  the  influence  by  which  they  are  made  to  differ, 
is  wholly,  and  purely  divine,  and  altogether  of  grace  ?  Is  it 
possible,  that  any  birth  of  blood,  or  of  the  will  of  the  flesh, 
or  of  the  will  of  man,  or  of  any  other  than  of  God,  should 
be  adequate  to  an  effect  so  peculiar,  so  holy,  so  consistent 
with  the  hope  of  a  happy  destiny  ?  Let  the  man  who  denies 
this  doctrine  of  divine  influence — Philosopher  or  Peasant — 
either  seek  that  influence  himself,  as  essential  to  his  happi- 
ness, and  "become  a  fool  that  he  may  be  wise,"  or  bring  us 
an  example,  from  some  former  or  the  existing  age,  of  one 
who  lives  and  acts  like  a  stranger  on  the  earth,  and  yet  as- 
cribes it  to  some  cause  other  than  the  holy  spirit  of  God. 
Whither  will  he  go,  to  bring  us  such  an  example?  From 
what  temple  of  the  living,  from  what  record  of  the  dead,  will 
he  be  able  to  shew,  that  any  others,  than  those  who  believe  in 
divine  influence,  have  been  persuaded  practically  to  confess, 
that  they  were  strangers  and  pilgrims  on  the  earth  ?  And 
who,  unmindful  of  the  country  of  their  nativity,  once  having 
believed,  have  refused  to  return ;  but  plainly  declared,  by 
actions  which  do  not  deceive,  that  they  desired  a  better 
country  than  this,  even  an  heavenly  ?  Let  them  bring  us  a 
man  who  plainly  says  such  things,  by  the  course  of  his  affec- 
tions, the  object  of  his  zeal,  and  sacrifices,  and  labours,  and 
hopes,  or  we  dare  not  say  of  him,  as  of  the  evangelical  be- 
liever, God  is  not  ashamed  to  be  called  his  God.  Ah,  hear- 
er !  men  who  walk  by  sight  corporeal  or  mental,  and  not  by 


160  SERMON  XI. 

faith,  say  no  such  thing ;  and  they  whose  pilgrimage  is  from 
city  to  city,  only  to  buy  and  sell  and  get  gain,  have  chosen 
their  portion  in  this  life.  And  they  too,  who,  sick  of  this 
vale  of  tears  before  they  have  taken  hold  on  the  promise  that 
God  has  prepared  for  them  a  city  ;  and  who  would  madly 
rush  out  of  the  world,  or  out  of  life,  to  escape  its  trials,  plain- 
ly declare  their  ignorance  of  christian  holiness,  which  is  sat- 
isfied to  wait  patiently  in  well  doing,  for  their  felicity. 

3.  We  perceive,  from  this  subject,  that  faith  has  been, 
in  all  ages  of  the  world,  the  only  efficacious  means  of  salva- 
tion. As  it  is  written,  "  the  just  by  faith  shall  live."  Now 
faith  is  the  substance,  or  cordial  confidence,  of  all  that  God's 
word  teaches  us  to  hope  for  ;  and  the  inward  witness  of  the 
invisible  things  which  that  word  reveals.  One  set  of  men 
boast  of  reason,  as  adequate  to  all  the  purposes  of  holy  liv- 
ing :  but  reason  without  faith  to  govern  it,  never  carried 
one  soul  to  heaven.  Others  talk  of  the  sufficiency  of  con- 
science :  but  conscience  without  faith,  leads  others,  as  it  did 
Saul,  to  persecute  Christ  and  his  disciples,  as  the  offscour- 
ing  of  the  world.  Others  still,  add  to  reason  and  conscience, 
the  necessity  of  witnessing  good  examples,  and  consider  this 
threefold  cord,  as  a  sure  restraint  against  sin  ;  and  a  suffi- 
cient excitement  to  holiness.  Yet  even  the  addition  of  a 
good  example,  cannot  prove  influential  over  the  bad,  be- 
cause this  best  suits  the  taste  of  a  bad  heart. 

Faith  must  remain  the  only  efficacious  principle  of  a  con- 
duct pleasing  to  God,  which  has  ever  actuated  man  since 
the  apostacy.  This  only  prompts  the  decision — that  what 
God  has  said,  is  true.  God  has  commanded,  therefore  it  is 
good :  God  has  threatened,  it  will  therefore  come  to  pass  : 
God  has  ordered  the  event,  therefore  it  is  right  :  God  has 
promised,  therefore  do  I  trust :  God  governs,  therefore  I  sub- 
mit :  these  are  his  precepts,  therefore  I  obey.  Now,  thus 
fo  obey,  hope,  submit,  and  trust,  is  the  sum  of  all  our  duty. 


SERMON  XI.  1G1 

All  duty,  then,  is  the  effect  of  faith — of  nothing  else  :  for,  if 
any  other  cause  could  produce  these  effects,  the  Apostle 
would  not  have  said,  "  without  faith,  it  is  impossible  to 
please  God."  For  obedience  pleases  him  ;  submission 
pleases  him  ;  hope  in  the  Lord,  pleases  him ;  and  trust  in 
his  perfections  and  providence.  These,  therefore,  are  all 
the  fruits  of  faith. 

The  oldest,  and  the  earliest  friend  of  God,  became  so 
through  faith.  Abel  thus  offered  a  more  acceptable  sacri- 
fice than  Cain  ;  God  testifying  of  his  works,  that  they  were 
righteous.  Abraham,  Sarah,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  all  died  in 
faith,  and  were  moved  by  it  to  obedience  ;  expecting  the 
performance  of  his  promises,  though  they  never  lived  to  see 
them  accomplished.  They  were  persuaded  that  they  would 
be  performed  ;  and,  though  seeing  the  performance  afar  off, 
they  gave  up  the  world,  for  an  interest  in  them  ;  and  thus 
plainly  declared  themselves,  strangers  and  pilgrims  on  the 
earth.  The}'  said  this,  not  in  words  only,  but  by  their  con- 
duct. Abraham,  for  example,  said  to  the  sons  of  Heth,  sell 
me  a  burying  place  ;  I  do  not  ask  a  settlement  among  you ; 
I  am  but  a  stranger  and  a  sojourner  with  you.  But  if  he 
had  considered  this  world  as  his  home,  and  acted  like  an 
unbeliever,  instead  of  wandering  about,  at  God's  command, 
in  Mesopotamia,  he  would  have  gone  back  to  the  place  of 
his  fathers'  sepulchres,  and  his  carnal  relations.  But  by 
leaving  them,  and  by  his  conduct  where  he  was,  he  proved 
that  he  had  confidence  in  God,  and  that  he  sought  a  better 
country  than  that  he  had  left — than  that  in  which  he  was 
then  dwelling  under  the  tent. 

4.  In  the  last  place,  let  him  who  claims  the  christian 
hope,  exhibit  ever  to  the  imitation  of  those  around  him,  who 
live  upon  the  failures  of  professed  christians — let  him  faith- 
fully exhibit  this  distinctive  character  of  the  friend  of  God, 
and  say  to  the  world,  as  well  as  the  God  in  whom  he  boasts — 
21 


162  SERMON  XL 

Mark  well  the  meaning  of  my  tears  ;  "  for  I  am  a  stranger 
with  thee,  and  a  sojourner,  as  all  my  fathers  were."  Dear- 
ly beloved  !  I  beseech  you,  abstain  from  sinful  indulgences, 
from  the  very  appearance  of  evil.  Let  your  light  so  shine 
before  men,  that  they  may  glorify  your  Father  who  is  in 
heaven.  Then,  the  world  shall  see,  and  acknowledge,  the 
power  and  grace  of  God  ;  and  renounce,  perhaps,  their  sin- 
ful affections,  pursuits  and  hopes ;  and  their  interests  no 
longer  seem  to  clash  with  your  designs,  and  joys,  and  labors. 
The  pursuits  of  the  worldling  are  but  shadows.  If  he  suc- 
ceeds to  catch  them,  he  has  gained  but  an  infant's  toy  ;  and 
if  he  fail,  even  of  this,  he  has  exchanged  his  soul,  for 
nothing  ! 


SERMON  XII. 


►•©•♦ 


THE    ONLY    PROPER    OBJECT    OF    SOLICITUDE 

Philippians  iv.  5,  6,  7. 

Be  careful  for  nothing  :  but  in  every  tiling,  by  prayer  and  sup- 
plication, with  thanksgiving,  let  your  requests  be  made  known 
unto  God ;  and  the  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  oil  under- 
standing, shall  keep  your  hearts  and  minds  through  Christ 
Jesus. 

JUlSTRUST  of  God,  lies  at  the  foundation  of  all  human 
sorrow.  The  world  is  full  of  crimination  and  reproach. 
Wherever  you  go,  you  hear  the  voice  of  complaint.  No 
community  is  free  from  it,  whether  it  be  the  smallest — such 
as  the  family  circle  ;  the  largest — such  as  the  nation  ;  or  the 
intermediate  clusters  of  men,  in  towns,  villages,  and  states. 
Whoever,  therefore,  should  have  the  happiness,  by  his  wis- 
dom and  benevolence,  to  devise  a  perfect  remedy  for  the  evil, 
would  be  justly  pronounced  the  greatest  benefactor  of  man- 
kind. Such  a  benefactor,  I  present  you,  in  him  who  said, 
through  a  querulous  woman  in  the  village  of  Bethany,  to 
all  her  sex,  and  to   all  the   species,  "  thou   art  careful  and 


164  SERMON  XII. 

troubled  about  many  things  ;  but  one  thing  is  needful." 
The  remedy  is  also  before  you — Be  careful  for  nothing  ;  but 
commit  yourself,  and  your  way,  unto  the  Lord  ;  and  peace, 
sweet  peace,  such  as  the  world  giveth  not,  shall  take  posses- 
sion of  your  soul.  Adopt  his  principles,  and  follow  his  ex- 
ample, and  your  happiness  is  secured  beyond  the  possibility 
of  invasion.  Man  is  a  sinner ;  and  his  sins  make  him 
wretched.  But "  the  Lord  is  good  to  all,  and  his  tender  mer- 
cies are  over  all  his  works/'  The  proof  of  this,  however,  is 
found  only  in  following  his  directions  :  for  it  would  be  pre- 
posterous to  suppose,  thai  an  unknoivn  fountain,  is  to  be  ap- 
proached and  tasted,  by  any  other  mean9  than  keeping  in 
the  path  which  leads  to  it.  The  way  to  happiness,  there- 
fore, and  to  God,  is  in  keeping  his  commandments.  Follow 
the  Lord  full}',  in  his  directions,  and  you  will  certainly  find 
peace.  If  God  is  goo,d,  his  laws  are  good  ;  and  that  is  a 
perverse  mind,  which  complains  of  unhappiness,  while  re- 
fusing to  take  the  road  which  leads  to  it.  The  ways  of 
wisdom,  and  these  only,  are  ways  of  pleasantness,  and  all 
her  paths,  and  only  her's,  are  paths  of  peace.  Deny  your 
ungodliness,  and  worldly  lusts,  and  you  shall  find  no  cause 
of  complaint — no  gnawing  worm  at  the  root  of  your 
gourds,  and  your  vines.  Let  the  spirit  of  the  world  be  sup- 
planted, by  adopting  the  spirit  of  this  precept,  and  then, 
though  prosperity  or  adversity,  life  or  deatlf,  be  yours,  you 
shall  be  found  rejoicing  in  the  Lord,  and  joying  in  the  God 
of  your  salvation.  And  until  you  arrive  at  this  point  of 
moral  elevation,  any  external  condition  which  has  been 
reached  in  earth  or  heaven,  would  leave  you  comfortless ; 
and  a  descent  would  remain  to  you,  like  that  of  Satan  from 
the  abodes  of  bliss.  And  this  for  the  very  pbvious  reason, 
that  pleasure  and  pain  do  not  result  from  any  state  of  mat- 
ter, but  from  the  state  of  the  mind.  Wandering  of  desire, 
would  make  an  angel  wretched  ;  and  fixedness  of  the  heart 


SERMON  XII.  165 

on  proper  objects,  has  made  a  thousand  martyrs  superior  to 
torture.  This,  then,  is  the  sentiment  to  be  illustrated  ;  and 
I  beg  you  to  take  fast  hold  of  it,  and  never  let  it  go  :  to 
keep  it,  that  it  may  be  your  life.  This  is  the  sentiment  of 
Jesus  Christ — That  any  solicitude  of  man,  which  excludes  a 
sense  of  dependance  upon  God  ;  which  implies  a  want  of 
submission  to  God  ;  which  involves  the  supposition  that  v.  e 
are  wiser  than  God  ;  or  which  implies  distrust  of  the  good- 
ness of  God ;  is  self-tormenting,  and  must  bereave  the  soul 
of  settled  tranquillity  and  peace. 

1.  First,  that  solicitude,  which  excludes  a  sense  of  de- 
pendence upon  God,  makes  a  man  his  own  tormentor.  Con- 
cerning all  things  which  relate  to  the  present  life,  whether 
food  or  raiment,  houses  or  friends,  a  good  name,  or  health 
and  freedom,  our  duty  is  plain  and  well  defined,  and  consists 
in  a  diligent  and  faithful  use  of  such  means  as  God  has  put 
into  our  possession.  Beyond  this,  all  is  without  our  reach, 
and  beyond  our  control ;  and  all  solicitude  and  anxiety, 
other  than  that  of  doing  our  duty,  is  sure  to  harrass  and  dis- 
tress the  mind.  Why  then  should  a  man  exercise,  or  trouble 
his  thoughts,  on  the  subject?  It  will  effect  nothing,  towards 
hastening  or  accomplishing  his  desire.  He  can  add  nothing 
to  his  stature,  nor  make  one  hair  white  or  black.'  All  his 
anxiety  beyond  this,  is  like  that  of  the  child  crying  for  the 
moon — it  makes  himself  and  others  much  disquietude,  but 
has  no  tendency  or  influence,  to  bring  the  object  of  his  so- 
licitude into  possession.  The  law  of  gravitation,  and  all 
the  other  laws  of  nature,  are  forever  settled  in  heaven  ;  and 
they  will  not  cease  their  operation,  nor  deviate  from  their 
course.  Why  then,  if  man  seeks  enjoyment,  should  he  take 
the  very  method  which  ensures  his  disquietude  ?  Why  does 
he  not  do,  what  he  knows  to  be  his  duty ;  and  in  humble, 
and  thankful  dependance  upon  him  who  has  reserved  the 
event  in  his  own  power,  feel  content  that  the  issue  is  of  God  ? 


166  SERMON  XII. 

The  mother  who  watches  over  her  diseased  infant,  or  sends 
her  darling  boy  upon  the  waves,  to  seek  a  subsistence  for 
herself  and  him,  may  pass  her  nights  in  watchings,  and  her 
days  in  fastings  and  labors,  and  refuse  to  be  comforted,  till 
they  are  safely  restored  to  her  arms  ;  and  in  consequence  of 
such  determination,  vex  and  distress  her  soul  for  months  and 
years.  But  her  solicitude  comes  too  late.  The  only  ques- 
tion which  should  have  excited  it,  was  a  question  of  duty  ; 
and  when  this  was  settled,  by  the  rules  of  God's  word,  and 
done  accordingly,  nothing  more  belonged  to  her,  but  all  the 
rest  to  God ;  and  what  she  had  no  control  over,  should  nev- 
er have  been  a  subject  of  anxiety  at  all.  But  she  will  tell 
me,  I  was  a  parent,  and  how  could  I  help  it  ?  But,  my 
friend,  God  is  a  parent  too  ;  and-  when  you  have  obeyed 
him,  and  committed  your  way  unto  the  Lord,  you  must  not 
plead  your  parental  feelings  towards  your  children,  for  act- 
ing as  if  your  heavenly  Father  was  dependent  upon  you,  or 
you  independent  of  him. — And  if  you  cannot  help  torment- 
ing yourself  by  your  sins,  neither  can  you  expect  God  will 
work  a  miracle  to  preserve  you  from  their  unavoidable  fruits. 
Are  not  the  feelings  of  God  as  worthy  to  be  trusted,  and  as 
likely  to  be  proper,  towards  you  and  your  family,  as  your 
own  ;  and  had  you  trusted  in  him,  would  you  have  been 
confounded,  or  excessively  grieved? 

Here  is  a  man  brought  home,  covered  with  the  marks  of 
poverty  and  disease — inconsolable  for  the  loss  of  his  pat- 
rimony ;  and  subject  to  all  the  miseries  of  a  gloomy  and 
desponding  mind,  because  he  has  not  succeeded  in  his  enter- 
prize.  He  said,  I  will  go  into  such  a  city  for  a  year,  and 
buy,  and  sell,  and  get  gain  ;  and  return  with  a  competence 
to  my  family,  and  enjoy  it  with  them  many  years.  But  did 
he  set  out,  with  a  humble  sense  of  his  dependance  upon 
God  ?  Did  he  lay  all  his  plans,  under  a  consciousness  of  his 
imbecility  and  frailty  ?   Did  he  consult  him.  on  whose  plear 


SERMON  XII.  167 

sure  riches  and  strength  are  suspended  ?  And  had  he  follow- 
ed the  rule  of  his  merciful  lawgiver,  and  sought  all  this,  in 
subordination  to  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness  ? 
Not  so,  for  then  he  would  have  been  prepared  for  the  event ; 
and,  instead  of  coming  home  disconsolate,  would  have  said 
to  his  family — God,  who  is  rich  in  mercy,  has  defeated  my 
plans  :  he  knows  what  is  best  for  us  :  I  committed  my  way, 
and  the  event,  to  him  ;  and  I  have  no  wish  to  take  it  back. 
Be  not  anxious  about  your  life,  nor  mine.  The  Lord  will 
provide.  He  sees  it  needful  that  we  suffer  this  disappoint- 
ment, and  that  we  have  trouble  in  the  flesh  ;  but  it  is  for 
good.  Let  us  wait  the  issue,  and  rejoice  in  his  sufficiency. 
Which  of  the  two,  is  the  happiest  state  of  mind  ;  and  to 
which  of  the  two,  does  carnal  and  forbidden  anxiety  about 
even  a  competence,  necessarily  conduct  us  ? 

My  hearers  !  the  man  who  leaves  the  Almighty  out  of 
sight,  when  he  sows  his  seed,  or  waits  for  the  rain ;  and 
troubles  himself  about  causes,  over  which  his  prayers,  and 
diligence,  and  prudence,  can  exert  no  influence,  necessarily 
subjects  himself  to  vexation  of  heart ;  and  well  may  he  thank 
God  if  his  seed  ever  vegetate,  or  the  corn  mature,  or  the 
crop  be  gathered  in,  or  he,  after  all,  have  power  to  eat  there- 
of. The  vexation  is  of  his  own  making;  and  all'the  good 
he  enjoys  of  his  labour,  is  the  unmerited  gift  of  God. 

What  think  you  of  the  man,  who  breaks  in,  by  his  secular 
thoughts,  upon  the  consecrated  business  of  the  sabbath — who 
mixes  up  the  distinct  concerns  of  this  six  days  with  those  of 
the  seventh,  which  is  God's  ;  and  who,  forgetting  his  account 
with  God,  transfers  his  devotions  from  the  closet  and  the 
sanctuary,  to  his  counting  house  and  his  ledger — is  he  care- 
ful for  nothing  ?  Has  he  no  unreasonable  solicitude,  and  is 
not  his  dependence  rather  upon  his  own  right  hand,  than 
upon  God  ?  Does  such  a  man  wonder  that  he  is  not  happy, 
in  his   present  condition,  or   future   prospects  ? — Does   he 


168  SERMON  XII. 

complain  that  wisdom's  ways  are  unpleasant;  or  is  it  strange, 
that  the  word  of  God  does  not  profit  him  ?  The  cares  of  this 
world,  as  the  Master  forewarned  him,  choke  the  word,  and 
render  it  unfruitful.  It  is  of  no  profit,  and  of  no  consola- 
tion ;  and  he  is  his  own  tormentor.  And  when  at  the  last, 
remorse  stings  him  like  a  serpent,  he  will  look  back  upon 
his  self  wrought  miseries,  and  say,  how  has  my  heart  des- 
pised instruction,  and  hated  reproof — therefore  has  all  this 
evil  come  upon  me.  Thus,  every  kind  and  degree  of  soli- 
citude about  worldly  good,  which  excludes  a  due  sense  of 
dependance  on  God,  is  self  tormenting,  and  drives  peace 
now  and  forever  from  the  breast.  It  renders  a  man's  soul, 
like  the  turbid  and  restless  sea,  whose  agitation  produces 
mire  and  dirt.  Would  it  not  have  been  better  to  have  hum- 
bly followed  the  direction  in  the  text  ? 

2.  That  solicitude,  which  implies  a  want  of  submission  to 
God,  produces  the  same  effect.  "  I  cannot  have  it  so" — is 
often  the  decision  of  the  mind,  in  cases  where  God  has  re- 
vealed his  determination,  that  so  it  shall  be  :  and  the  oppo- 
sition, or  dissatisfaction,  of  the  heart,  is  only  kicking  against 
the  goad.  I  say  nothing  of  the  abominable  impiety  of  such 
a  mind  :  I  am  only  showing  the  unavoidable  wretchedness  it 
produces.  Here  is  a  man,  for  example,  who  plans  wisely  as 
the  world  say,  who  makes  all  his  arrangements  judicious- 
ly, to  accomplish  his  plans,  and  who  is  defeated  in  every 
thing  he  proposes,  or  disappointed  in  all  he  undertakes. 
His  earthly  possessions  waste  away,  his  family  descend  from 
their  accustomed  rank  in  life,  to  comparative  servility  :  now 
whatever  the  means  are — whether  the  hand  of  men,  or  the 
more  direct  hand  of  God — God  has  ordered  it,  and  so  it  must 
be.  But  he  cannot  have  it  so  :  his  thoughts  trouble  him  : 
his  mind  preys  upon  4tself  :  every  thing  which  reminds  him 
of  his  former  prosperity  is  a  vexation,  and  his  whole  soul  is 
continually  discomposed.     Now  let  us  suppose  him  to  say — 


SERMON  XII.  169 

the  thing  is  of  the  Lord,  without  whom  a  sparrow  falls  not 
to  the  ground — His  will  is  done — He  gave,  and  he  has  taken 
away ;  and  blessed  be  his  name.  Suppose  further,  that  he 
should  feel  as  he  says,  and  all  he  says — what  then,  disturbs 
his  peace  ?  If  he  have  no  imprudence,  or  wickedness,  of  his 
own,  in  getting,  to  reflect  upon,  what  loss  has  he  suffered  ? 
Nay,  what  good  has  he  not  gained — since  we  know  God 
makes  all  things  work  together  for  good  to  them  who  love 
him  ? 

Or  take,  on  the  contrary,  the  man  who  lives  all  his  days, 
in  opposition  to  the  known  will  of  God — only  for  himself,  and 
his  present  enjoyment :  he  has  all  that  heart  can  wish,  but  he 
cannot  bear  to  think  that  he  must  die,  and  give  an  account 
of  himself  to  God.  He  has  no  idea,  of  being  forever  shut 
up  in  a  state  of  despair,  and  excluded  from  the  happiness  of 
heaven,  because  he  has  been  alienated  from  the  life  of  God. 
This  doctrine,  of  consequence,  whether  he  affect  to  believe 
it  or  not,  is  an  occasional  cause  of  disquietude  ;  and  with  all 
his  show  of  ease,  and  pleasure,  and  hilarity,  he  is  a  wretched 
man  ;  his  sick  and  dying  bed  discloses  the  fact,  to  those  who 
had  never  known  it  before,  and  who  perhaps,  had  envied 
him  his  happiness.  It  is  impossible  he  should  be  willing  it 
should  be  thus,  because,  as  the  Apostle  said,  "  no  rrian  hateth 
his  own  flesh,  but  nourisheth  and  cherisheth  it."  His  very 
solicitude,  then,  however  moderate  it  may  seem  in  regard  to 
worldly  enjoyment,  is  excessive,  so  long  as  he  prefers  it  to  a 
life  of  piety  ;  because,  in  some  essential  particulars,  it  is  in- 
subordinate to  the  purpose  which  shall  stand,  and  to  the 
pleasure,  which,  in  defiance  of  his  wishes,  will  be  done. 

In  like  manner  every  man,  who  through  the  love  of  this 
present  evil  world,  or  its  dearest  objects,  or  the  love  of  him- 
self, cannot  submit  himself  to  the  doctrines  and  the  provi- 
dence of  God,  renders  himself  wretched ;  because  there  is 
opposition  and  collision  ;   and  as  these  cannot  act  upon  the 


170  SERMON  XII. 

Almighty,  to  discourage  him  from  pursuing  his  course,  they 
cannot  fail  to  grind,  even  the  heart  of  stone,  which  frets- 
itself  against  the  Lord,  How  excessively  careful,  then,  are 
men,  to  render  themselves  miserable,  both  here  and  hereaf- 
ter, simply  for  want  of  a  cordial  submission  to  the  purposes, 
and  counsels,  and  providence  of  Him  with  whom  we  have 
to   do  ! 

8.  In  the  third  place,  that  solicitude,  which  involves  the 
supposition  that  we  are  wiser  than  God,  fails  not,  sooner  or 
later,  to  produce  a  wretched  state  of  mind.  It  is  an  old 
story,  and  one  derived  from  the  observation  of  men  of  all 
ages,  that  almost  no  man  is  contented  with  his  own  condi- 
tion. He  never  has  enough,  or  what  he  has,  is  not  of  the 
right  kind,  or  given  in  the  right  time,  or  communicated  in 
the  right  way,  or  does  not  effect  the  object  for  which  it  was 
sought.  I  need  not  offer  examples,  or  illustrations  of  -this 
truth.  I  speak  only  what  every  child  of  Adam  knows  ;  and 
testify  only  what  he  has  seen,  and  my  testimony  is  from  him- 
self. Now  all  this  discontent,  and  dissatisfaction,  productive 
of  much  injury  to  society,  as  well  as  a  painful  void,  or  an 
overwhelming  discomfiture  to  one's-self,  involves  the  suppo- 
sition, that,  wise  as  we  may  admit  the  great  disposer  of 
events  to  be,  he  manages  our  concerns,  less  wisely  than  we 
should  do  for  ourselves,  had  we  only,  like  him,  to  speak  our 
will,  and  have  it  done.  No  man  can  doubt  that  God  gov- 
erns the  world  ;  that  both  good  and  evil  come  of  him  ;  and 
that  every  man's  external  condition  is  allotted  him  of  the 
Most  High  ;  and,  that  being  of  more  value  than  many  spar- 
rows, God  pays  a  proportionate  regard  to  his  destination, 
and  every  thing  which  concerns  him  in  this  life.  That  what 
he  gives,  we  gather  ;  what  he  withholds,  we  look  for  in  vain 
from  any  quarter  :  and  therefore,  that  nothing  is  to  be  ex- 
pected from  second  causes.  Why,  then,  do  we  not  regulate 
our  desires  by  his  rule,  and  satisfy  ourselves  with  his  dispo- 


SERMON  XII.  171 

sal  ? — Why  attempt  to  rob,  or  over-reach  God  ? — To  make 
that  material  object  yield  us  a  good  which  God  has  not  put 
in  its  power ;  or  look  for  an  effect,  from  this  or  that   condi- 
tion, which  he  has  told  us,  it  is  not  fitted  nor  designed    to 
produce  ?     There  can  no  reason  be  given  for  it,  but  either, 
that  we  do  not  regard  the  counsel,  or  hand,   of  God  m  his 
operations,  and  so  do  not   understand  his   loving-kindness ; 
or,  that  we  think  our  judgment,  at  least  in  our  owy,  concerns, 
better  than  his.     Indeed  if  we  do  not  always  go  to  his  coun- 
sel to  make  up  our  judgment,  it  can  be  owing   only   to  our 
self-sufficiency.     Is  it  not  manifest,  then,  since  "the  foolish- 
ness of  God  is  wiser  than  men,"  that  any  solicitude  to  carve 
for  ourselves,  and,  above  all,  that   contumacious  and   obsti- 
nate spirit  which  decides,  that  it  should  be  according  to  our 
minds,  is  excessive,  and  productive   of  mental    commotion  ? 
Surely,  the  man  who  thinks  himself  wiser  than    God,   must 
be  always  a  prey  to  disappointment  and   humiliation  :  be- 
cause, in  spite  of  his  opinion,  the  wisdom   of  God  will  tri- 
umph.    Condescending  as  he  is,  Jehovah   will   never   yield 
this  point,  either  in  regard  to  the  propriety  of  his   laws,    or 
the  fitness  of  his  providence.     In  the  mode  of  bringing   up 
our  children,  in  the  duty  of  secret,  family  and  public  pray- 
er, as  well  as  in  the  regulation  of  all   the  concerns  of  this 
life,  God  has  given  us  the  dictates  of  his   wisdom.      If  we 
think  ourselves  possessed  of  too  much  understanding  to  fol- 
low his  prescriptions,  we  shall  of  course  adopt  methods    of 
our  oivn  devising  ;  and  if,  in  consequence  of  so   doing,    we 
have  an  unruly  house,  or  cursed  children,  and  reproach  for 
our  negligence,  and  stings  of  conscience,  and   ten  thousand 
other  kindred  fruits  of  supposing  ourselves  wiser   than  God, 
we  have  only  to  thank  our  superior  wisdom,   for   its   legiti- 
mate fruits  ;  and  learn,  by  our  wretchedness — what  we  would 
not  be  taught  by  his   precepts — that  God's  wisdom  is  better 
than  our  strength — and  that  all  solicitude,    other  than  that. 


172  SERMON  XII. 

the  object  of  which  is  to  please  him,  has  yielded  nothing 
better  than  vanity  and  vexation  of  spirit.  The  sighs,  and 
groans,  and  self-reproaches  which  you  ever  hear  ;  and  which 
burst  forth  from  your  own  bosom,  when  in  solitude,  are  all 
to  be  traced  to  this  anxiety  about  concerns  that  belonged  to 
God,  and  not  to  man.  He  who  has  the  testimony,  that  his 
only  anxiety  has  been  to  please  God,  has  a  soul  as  unruffled 
as  the  bosom  of  the  lake,  and  one  which  as  brightly  reflects 
the  grandeur  and  beauty  of  the  heavens.  The  wisdom  of 
God  is  in  him.  And  for  want  of  some  testimony  like  this, 
you  see  the  wise  of  this  world,  with  a  bosom  heaving  like 
the  troubled  ocean — boisterous  and  foaming — -wave  rises 
above  wave,  urging  on  one  another,  till  they  are  split  and 
swallowed  up  by  some  overwhelming  billow  in  pursuit. 

Now,  in  all  these  things,  said  the  wisdom  of  God,  I 
would  have  had  you  without  carefulness,  save  only,  that 
ye  might  please  the  Lord ;  and  content  with  the  condition 
he  allotted  you  ;  "for  we  brought  nothing  into  this  world, 
and  it  is  certain  we  can  carry  nothing  out."  Why  set  the 
heart  upon  that  which  is  not  f  The  world  like  a  pageant 
passeth  away. 

4.  Finally,  all  that  solicitude  in  man,  which  implies  dis- 
trust of  the  goodness  of  God,  is  also  self-tormenting;  and 
bereaves  the  soul  of  settled  tranquillity  and  peace.  No  in- 
considerable portion  of  our  wicked  world,  are  influenced  in 
their  opinions,  and  feelings,  and  conduct,  by  the  maxims  and 
views  of  the  world,  rather  than  of  God.  The  irreligion  of 
thousands  has  its  proximate  cause  in  this  influence.  They 
are  ashamed  of  their  duty  to  God,  or  of  being  detected  in  it, 
because  of  what  men  will  say  of  them.  They  are  more  sus- 
ceptible to  ridicule,  than  to  truth  :  and  with  less  difficulty 
mount  over  the  law  and  authority  of  Jehovah,  than  the 
opinion,  and  patronage,  and  respect  of  men.  O  !  how  many 
a  youth,  has,  on  this  account,  taken  the  first  step  in  trans- 


SERMON  XII.  173 

gression  of  one  or  other  of  the  commandments  of  God, 
which  has  broke  his  way  to  hardihood  in  sin  !  How  many 
a  man  in  mature  life,  and  even  in  old  age,  has  been  reluctant 
to  obey  God,  and  leave  the  companions  of  his  vices,  lest  he 
should  incur  their  odium,  and  the  name  of  an  enthusiast ! 
Now  this  solicitude  to  please  men,  or  to  avoid  suspicion  and 
reproach,  implies  an  impious  distrust  of  God;  and  so  does 
all  anxiety,  about  what  men  will  think  of  us,  when  put  in 
competition  with  our  obligations  to  the  fear  of  God,  and  to 
the  pursuit  of  that  honor  which  cometh  from  him  only.  But 
is  not  every  such  pusillanimous  and  base  spirit,  treasuring 
up  scorpion  stings,  for  its  retired  and  solitary  hours  ;  and 
remorse  intolerable,  for  the  day  when  God  shall  visit  him  in 
anger  ?  Yes,  even  before  that  day,  this  excessive  careful- 
ness to  please  one's-self  and  the  world,  rather  than  to  do  the 
will  of  God,  brings  with  it  a  miserable  state  of  mind.  It 
makes  a  man  afraid,  or  ashamed,  to  look  at  himself  in  the 
light  of  an  accountable  being  ;  it  prevents  him  from  con- 
versing with  wise  men,  and,  of  course,  from  becoming  wise  ; 
and,  above  all,  it  renders  him  contemptible  in  the  eyes  of 
the  very  men,  whose  sarcasms,  and  reproaches,  he  is  so 
anxious  to  avoid.  They  know,  he  knows,  and  all  men,  in 
their  right  mind,  know,  that  religion  is  the  one  thing  need- 
ful— They  know  that  it  is  the  height  of  wisdom,  for  a  man 
to  be  ready  to  meet  his  God  :  and  equally  well,  that  some 
preparation  is  necessary  for  this  end  ;  and  that  among  these 
preparatory  steps,  the  first  is,  that  of  leaving  the  company 
of  the  scorner,  the  scoffer,  the  ungodly,  and  forsaking  the 
way,  and  the  companionship,  of  evil  men.  Evil  company- 
is  laid  down  in  our  chart,  as  one  of  the  dangerous  shoals  to 
be  avoided.  They  have  heard  it  said,  in  all  the  tenderness 
of  God's  paternal  love,  "My  son,  if  sinners  entice  thee,  con- 
sent thou  not."  They  have  heard  from  the  high  authority 
of  Jehovah's  word,  "Thou  shalt  not  follow  a  multitude  to  do 


174  SERMON  XII. 

evil ;"  and,  over  all,  "cease  to  hear  the  instructions  which 
cause  thee  to  err."  But  they  have  no  confidence  in  the 
goodness  of  him,  who  thus  warns  and  counsels  them.  They 
question  the  benevolent  intentions  of  God,  in  this  thing. 
They  have  too  much  solicitude  for  their  honor,  to  believe 
that  God  will  take  care  of  that,  as  well  as  of  every  thing 
else,  however  dear,  which  we  commit  to  his  keeping.  In- 
deed, they  have  no  belief,  that  a  strict  regard  to  all  God's 
commands,  is  necessary  to  make  them  honorable  and  happy. 
They  expect  to  attain  these  good  things,  in  defiance  of  their 
contrariety  of  affection,  and  practicej  to  his  precepts ;  and, 
therefore,  hate  not  every  false  way.  Thus  their  life  is  cor- 
rupted, and  their  heart  estranged  from  God.  The  con- 
science is  robbed  of  its  power  to  testify  in  their  behalf ;  and 
all  the  sources  of  permanent  comfort,  are  turned  into  springs 
of  bitterness  and  grief.  Is  this  an  imitation  of  those  holy 
men,  inheriting  the  promises,  who  rejoiced  always  in  the 
Lord — who  were  ready,  not  to  be  bound  only,  but  to  die, 
for  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus — and  who,  having  sold  their 
possessions,  or  abandoned  them  at  his  call,  counted  all  things 
loss,  that  they  might  win  Christ ;  and  themselves  infinite 
gainers  by  the  exchange  ?  No,  hearer  !  it  is  imitating  that 
murderer,  who  sold  his  Lord,  and  his  soul,  for  the  pelf  and 
pleasure  of  men,  as  wicked,  and  miserable,  as  himself.  Be- 
hold his  way,  and  as  you  dread  his  end,  walk  not  in  it — -pass 
not  by  it — turn  from  it,  and  pass  away.  Instead  of  binding 
our  hearts  more  closely  to  the  world,  we  ought  to  be  'every 
day,  letting  go  our  hold  upon  it,  and  all  that  is  in  it.  In- 
stead of  keeping  the  soul,  moored  in  this  polluted  and  infec- 
tious haven,  we  should  have  long  ago  embarked,  and  been 
far  on  towards  the  heavenly  shore — our  rest — our  everlast- 
ing  home. 

But  I  must  say,  brethren,  and  friends  !  if  I  have  described 
any  of  your  characters  in  this  discourse,-  your  repentance  is 


SERMON  XII.  175 

yet  to  be  begun  :  your  hearts  are  over-charged  with  the  af- 
fairs of  this  life,  and  the  day  of  the  Lord  may  come  on  you 
unawares.  All  your  solicitude,  is  the  offspring  of  doubt 
and  distrust,  and  not  of  faith.  It  proceeds  from  the  spirit 
of  the  world,  and  not  from  that  which  is  of  God.  And  now 
let  me  ask,  have  you  not  been  the  destroyers  of  your  own 
happiness  ?  Has  not  God  said  truly  of  you,  as  of  other 
men,  "  thou  hast  destroyed  thyself?"  You  have  been  care- 
ful and  troubled,  about  many  things  which  are  but  for  a 
moment ;  but  for  eternity,  O  !  for  eternity,  and  for  God, 
what  solicitude  has  marked  a  single  year  of  your  protracted 
life?  But  beloved!  let  me  remind  you,  you  cannot  sow 
cockle,  and  reap  wheat ;  and  if  solicitude  in  the  cares  of  this 
life,  is  really  destructive  of  your  happiness  here,  how  infatu- 
ated the  mind,  which  hopes  to  derive  from  it  the  peace  of 
God  forever.  Why,  then,  continue  to  cry  peace,  when  God 
says  there  is  no  peace ! 

But  he  is  a  fierce  reprover,  who  tells  us  our  miseries,  and 
our  sins,  without  pointing  out  a  remedy,  and  a  more  excel- 
lent way  to  the  happiness  we  need.  Christ  was  not  a  teach- 
er of  this  austere  character.  He  has  made  plain  the  way  of 
our  duty,  and  his  language  is  in  your  ears — "  Labor  not  for 
the  meat  which  perisheth,  but  for  that  which  endur'eth  unto 
everlasting  life."  But  what  shall  we  do  then  ?  Labour  to 
please  God.  Let  this  be  your  motive  to  diligence,  in  your 
worldly  callings,  to  frugality,  economy,  and  making  provi- 
sion for  your  families.  Then,  every  thing  will  be  in  place  : 
you  will  be  seeking  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  right- 
eousness, as  the  object  of  all  your  solicitude  ;  and  your 
heavenly  Father,  who  knoweth  what  you  have  need  of,  will 
add  all  necessary  supplies.  Your  carefulness  will  never  pro- 
duce these  supplies — They  are  his  gift  after  all.  I  beseech 
you,  therefore,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  God,  that  you  be 
not  careful  for  them,  as  objects  on  which  your  desires  and 


176  SERMON  XII. 

labors  terminate  ;  but  to  present  your  bodies,  and  your  spir- 
its, a  living  sacrifice,  holy  and  acceptable  to  God,  which  is 
your  reasonable  service.  Be  not  conformed  to  this  world; 
but  seek  to  please  God,  and  all  these  things  shall  be  added. 
They  are  just  as  sure  to  you  in  this  way,  as  in  any  other  ; 
and,  what  is  of  infinitely  more  consequence,  your  happiness, 
for  time  and  for  eternity,  is  also  ensured  without  any  sacri- 
fice, disproportioned  to  the  hope  set  before  you  in  the  gos- 
pel. Hear  then  O  earth,  earth,  earth,  hear,  trust,  and  obey, 
the  word  of  the  Lord — Be  careful  for  nothing  :  but  in  every 
thing,  by  prayer  and  supplication,  with  thanksgiving,  let  your 
requests  be  made  known  unto  God ;  and  the  peace  of  God, 
which  passeth  all  understanding,  shall  keep  your  hearts  and 
minds  through  Christ  Jesus. 


SERMON  XIII. 


»•©•«« 


CHRISTIAN    EXULTATION. 

Galatians,  vi.  14. 

But  God  forbid  that  I  should  glory,  save  in  the  cross  of  our  Lord 
J-'sus  Christ,  by  whom  the  world  is  crucified  tinto  me,  and  I  unt9 
the  world. 

1  will  ascend  into  the  heavens,  I  will  rise  above  the 
clouds,  I  will  exalt  my  throne  above  the  stars,  I  will  be  like 
the  Most  High."  A  noble  resolution,  my  brethren  !  had  it 
been  made  in  the  name  of  him,  who  sitteth  on  the  circle  of  the 
heavens,  and  before  whom  all  the  inhabitants  of  earth  are  as 
grasshoppers.  But  intoxicated  with  the  love  of  pleasure, 
and  deluded  with  the  popular  opinion,  that  there  is  no  hap- 
piness for  man  but  in  independence  of  God,  this  instinctive 
vaunting  of  the  carnal  mind  becomes,  at  once,  the  proof  of 
its  impiety,  and  the  harbinger  of  a  fall.  It  is  followed,  of 
consequence,  with  the  denunciation  of  him,  who  has  deter- 
mined to  be  sanctified  in  all  them  that  approach  him,  and 
before  all  creatures  to  be  glorified.  It  is  of  such  a  mind, 
swollen  with  the  conceit  of  itself,  as  if  there  were  none  be- 
side, that  God  has  said — "  Though  he  climb  up  to  heaven,  I 
23 


178  SERMON  XIII. 

will  bring  him  down  ;  though  he  hide  in  the  top  of  Carmel, 
my  hand  shall  fetch  him  thence  ;  and  I  will  set  mine  eye 
upon  him  for  evil  and  not  for  good."  Pride  cast  angels 
down  from  heaven,  and  drove  man  from  the  joyful  presence 
of  his  Maker  ;  and  every  sinner,  while  he  continues  to  in- 
dulge it,  will  find  it  an  insurmountable  barrier  to  his  enjoy- 
ment of  God.  Through  the  influence  of  this  vile  passion, 
men  have  always  stumbled  at  the  very  threshold  of  Christian- 
ity, and  rejected  the  only  means  of  life,  because  the  way  to 
exaltation  is  by  the  valley  of  humiliation.  It  is  the  constitu- 
tion of  God,  without  cheerful  submission  to  which,  he  will 
have  no  man  to  be  saved,  that  no  flesh  shall  glory  in  his 
presence.  This  truth  is,  by  Jesus  Christ,  laid  at  the  foun- 
dation of  his  system  :  this  truth  he  lived  and  died  to  exhibit, 
in  most  striking  prominence,  for  the  conviction  and  profit  of 
man.  Jesus  Christ  humbled  himself,  before  the  Father  ex- 
alted him  ;  and  there  is  a  connection  between  that  humilia- 
tion and  exaltation,  which  the  world  never  understood — 
which  even  the  disciples,  attendant  on  his  personal  ministry, 
were  slow  to  comprehend.  To  the  one,  therefore,  his  cross 
was  foolishness  and  an  obstruction  ;  to  the  other,  for  a  time, 
an  occasion  of  useless  mortification.  But  on  the  develope*- 
ment  of  the  great  mystery  of  godliness,  and  the  removal  of 
that  vail  which  covers  every  self-sufficient,  unsubdued  heart, 
the  disciples  clearly  perceived,  that  "  it  became  him,  for 
whom  are  all  things,  and  by  whom  are  all  things,  in  bring- 
ing many  sons  to  glory,  to  make  the  Captain  of  their  salva- 
tion perfect,  through  sufferings.""  They  saw  too,  that  the 
moral  beauty,  and  greatness,  of  their  lowly  Master,  had  been 
obscured,  only  by  the  false  medium  through  which  they  had 
been  looking  at  his  system  ;  and  receiving  the  kingdom  of 
God  as  little  children,  they  saw  his  glory,  and  were  changed 
into  his  image,  glorying  only  in  the  cross. 

The  language  of  the  text  is  figurative  j  and  the  figure,  be- 


SERMON  XIII.  179 

ing  derived  from  the  crucifix — the  most  disgraceful,  and  the 
most  distressing  instrument  of  punishment — denotes  self-im- 
molation, from  the  purest  and  noblest  motives,  and  for  the 
highest  end.  The  incarnation,  labors,  and  death  of  Christ, 
therefore,  constituted  his  cross  :  taken  up  for  no  other  end, 
than  the  glory  of  God  in  the  salvation  of  sinners.  In  this 
extended  view  of  it,  the  Apostle  declares  the  cross  of  Christ 
to  be  the  only  ground  of  human  exultation  :  and  the  truth 
of  this  declaration  will  appear  from  the  following  consider- 
ations : — It  is  the  only  exhibition  of  true  greatness — It  fur- 
nishes the  only  perfect  model  of  virtue — It  forms  the  only 
foundation  of  man's  hope — It  presents  a  harmonious  and 
glowing  image  of  all  the  perfections  of  the  Deity. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  the  cross  of  Christ  exhibits  all  the 
greatness  of  which  our  nature  is  capable.  Amidst  all  the 
degradation,  and  debasement,  of  our  species,  something  of  a 
God-like  nature  has  glimmered  through  the  ruins.  We  see 
in  man,  the  wreck  of  a  once  noble  and  beautiful  fabric.  His 
intellectual  superiority,  his  social  nature,  his  susceptibility  to 
generous  impressions,  though  he  indulges  a  propensity  to 
pervert  and  abuse  them  all,  furnish  an  illustrious  proof,  that 
God  made  him  upright,  but  little  lower  than  the  angels,  and 
the  very  image  of  himself.  There  cannot  be  a  doubt,  that 
man  was  once  justly  styled,  the  Lord  of  this  lower  world. 
But  with  all  these  indications  of  his  former  elevation,  every 
age  has  seen,  in  the  confusion  of  his  mind,  the  warring  of 
his  passions,  their  collision  with  those  of  his  fellow-men  and 
with  the  will  of  heaven,  a  demonstration  of  a  fall,  such  as 
leaves  him  nothing  of  his  own  in  which  to  glory,  unless  he 
glory  in  his  shame.  While  the  inventive  genius  of  one  dis- 
tinguished mind,  the  prowess  and  enterprize  of  another,  the 
acuteness  and  penetration  of  a  third,  the  fortitude  and  elo- 
quence, or  generosity  and  heroism,  of  others,  have  given  to 
a  few,  in  every  nation,  the  character  of  greatness  ;  it  has  re- 


180  SERMON  XIII. 

mained  evident  from  the  beginning,  that  no  man  has  pos- 
sessed all  these  attributes,  nor  any  one  of  them,  at  all  times: 
so  that,  after  the  lapse  of  four  thousand  years,  not  a  solitary 
instance  has  been  furnished,  of  a  character  exhibiting  through 
life,  all  the  qualities  which  constitute  true  greatness,  accord- 
ing to  man's  own  standard.  And,  to  the  humiliation  of  our 
yace,  we  are  compelled  to  add,  that  of  those  moral  proper- 
ties, without  which,  the  variety  and  lustre  of  man's  natural 
endowments  become  the  measure  of  his  disgrace,  all  men 
fcave  been  empty.  We  are  bound  to  regard  this  distinction  : 
we  must  insist  upon  it :  for  as  well  might  we  apply  the  epi- 
thets of  excellence  and  greatnpss  to  the  mountain,  as  to  the 
man,  if  these  consist  in  embosoming  vast  nd  splendid  mate- 
rials, rather  than  in  the  wisdom  and  utility  of  their  applica- 
tion. Until  Christ  appeared,  therefore,  the  world  was  left 
to  conjecture,  rather  than  to  witness,  the  dignity  of  which 
human  nature  is  capable  ;  and  to  collect  from  the  moral 
fragments  strewed  along  the  path  from  Eden  to  Nazareth, 
evidence  of  what,  by  a  proper  use  of  his  powers,  man  was, 
and  was  destined  to  be.  But  behold  the  Son  of  God!  and 
tell  us  what  is  superfluous,  what  defective,  in  his  character. 
There  is  a  dignity  in  his  childhood,  which  not  only  astonishes 
maternal  fondness,  but  confounds  inflated  learning — A  wis- 
dom, which  disarms  barbarity  of  its  rudeness,  and  refinement 
of  its  cunning.  The  apology  of  the  one  is,  "  never  man 
spake  like  this  man" — The  other's  greatest  sagacity,  is 
evinced  by  silence.  After  the  utmost  reach  of  that  sagacity, 
it  is  testified,  it  durst  ask  him  no  more  questions.  It  was 
the  glory  of  Jesus,  that  the  moral  qualities  of  his  heart,  gave 
an  influence  the  most  commanding,  to  all  the  attributes  of 
his  mind.  Because  that  was  unspotted,  he  was  incapable  of 
perverting  the  powers  which  made  him  great.  His  superi- 
ority to  the  world,  gave  him  an  ascendancy  over  it,  and 
made  him  in  reality,  what  many  have  affected  to  be,  a  person 


SERMON  XIII.  181 

of  superior  order.  It  was  this  moral  rectitude,  which  gave 
equal  worthlessness  to  the  caresses  and  curses  of  the  crowd, 
when  they  would  have  placed  upon  his  head,  first,  the  crown 
of  Caesar,  and  next,  the  crown  of  thorns.  It  was  this,  which 
withstood  the  temj«tations  of  the  devil  in  the  wilderness,  and 
supported  the  ignominy  of  the  cross.  But  for  this,  he  could 
not  have  met  prejudice  and  opposition,  without  impatience 
and  resentment;  nor  have  borne  every  kind  of  indignity  and 
sorrow,  without  repining  and  despondency.  In  the  midst  of 
the  world,  Jesus  Christ  stands  alone — the  single  object  de- 
serving unqualified,  and  unequivocal,  admiration  ;  because, 
he  is  the  only  subject  of  uniform  magnanimity.  Subjected 
to  all  our  infirmities,  and  to  more  than  all  our  sufferings,  his 
whole  life  is  without  a  stain,  and  its  last  act,  consummated 
its  perfection.  Outvying  the  only  luminary  at  all  like  him, 
every  part  of  his  course  was  a  meridian  splendor,  exceeded 
only  b}'  his  setting  rays. 

2.  Look  at  the  qualities  which  gave  him  this  pre-emin- 
ence ;  and  see,  in  the  second  place,  how  the  cross  of  Christ 
is  the  only  ground  of  exultation,  as  it  corrects  man's  notions 
of  glory,  and  presents  a  model  of  true  virtue.  The  schools 
of  philosophy,  the  portraits  of  history,  and  even  the  writers 
of  fiction,  with  all  their  latitude  of  conception,  and  license 
of  imagination,  exhibit  no  character  on  which  the  good  man 
dwells  with  entire  complacency.  Most  men  have  mistaken 
the  very  nature  of  virtue ;  and  even  those,  who,  gtiided  by 
a  prophet's  vision,  have  occasionally  exhibited  some  just 
traits  of  her  lovely  character,  have  been  miserably  defective, 
in  the  degree,  and  constancy,  of  their  excellence.  All  their 
defects,  in  notion  and  example,  are  corrected  and  supplied 
in  the  model  Christ  presents  us.  In  this,  under  all  the  trials 
of  man,  we  behold  none  of  his  weaknesses — In  him,  we  dis- 
cover all  man's  native  passions,  without  one  of  his  vices: — In 
him,  we  have  a  perfect  standard,  without  the  necessity  of  a 


182  SERMON  XIII. 

contrast  to  set  off  its  beauty — In  him,  we  have  all  that  prop* 
erly  belongs  to  mow,  yet  nothing  inferior  to  any  order  of  be- 
ing ;  because  he  is  perfect  in  his  sphere.  Is  true  greatness 
best  proved  by  adversity  ?  This  criterion  is  applied  to  him 
through  life  ;  and  through  life,  cheerful  submission  to  divine 
precept,  and  divine  appointment,  without  insensibility,  temer- 
ity, or  despondency,  invariably  shines.  Occasional  acts  of 
heroism,  and  wisdom,  and  generosity,  have  indeed  marked 
the  sage,  the  military  chieftain,  and  the  savage — acts  for 
which,  did  virtue  consist  in  outward  appearances,  and  single 
expressions,  they  might  be  awarded  immortality.  But  in 
Jesus  Christ,  we  behold  a  constant  succession  of  such  acts  : 
less  splendid  in  their  exterior,  than  in  their  motive.  He  is 
never  surprised,  never  committed.  In  all  changes,  he  is  self- 
possessed — In  all  conflicts,  even  where  he  seems  overcome, 
he  triumphs.  Illustrious  for  his  moderation,  when  his  enemy 
yields ;  for  his  forgiveness,  when  malignity  gains  a  tempo- 
rary gratification.  Ever  exalting,  and  ennobling  human  na- 
ture, b}'  sacrificing  his  own,  to  the  good  of  his  neighbour. 
The  very  act  of  coming  down  to  earth,  under  a  full  pre- 
science of  his  sufferings,  and  to  become  the  victim  of  sih2 
himself  without  guile,  exhibits  a  benevolence,  such  in  extent 
and  kind  as  human  conception  had  never  reached.  Never, 
in  the  filling  up  of  that  plan  of  propitiation,  did  he  betray  a 
symptom  of  mind  unworthy  the  grand  design  j  not  a  wish 
indicative  of  regret  for  the  undertaking.  In  condescension, 
labor,  self-denial,  meekness,  constancy,  tenderness,  fidelity, 
he  exceeded  the  expectations  which  the  seers  had  excited  ; 
and  the  living  character  seemed  to  excel  the  prophetic  pre- 
dictions. To  finish  the.  picture,  recollect  that  those  eyes, 
which  as  a  flame  of  fire  searched  through  all  his  motives, 
and  with  jealousy  scanned  every  action,  could  discover  no 
spot  in  him.  He  was  justified  in  the  spirit,  and  the  Judge 
both  of  outward  appearance  and  the  heart,  pronounced  him 


SERMON  XIII.  183 

without  fault.  The  consciousness  of  virtue  so  immaculate, 
gave  him  boldness  before  the  throne  of  his  Father,  as  well 
as  of  Pilate,  in  asserting  that  he  had  finished  his  work,  and 
in  claiming  the  glory  due  to  a  perfect  legal  righteousness. 

His  death  corresponded  with  his  life.     As  he  lived  poor, 
only  to   make  others   rich ;  so  he  died  in  disgrace,  to  exalt 
malefactors  to  glory.     Such  an  end  was  adapted  to  such   a 
beginning.     Forsaken  of  his  friends — mocked   of  his  ene- 
mies— abandoned,  for   a   moment,  of  his   Father — his   soul 
still  intent  on  the  single  object  of  its  being,    breathed  out  its 
life  in  pity  and  in  piety.     His  life  is   not   forced   from  him, 
but  voluntarily  laid   down.     He  bows  his  sacred  head,  and, 
as  he  dies,  exclaims,    «  Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know 
not  what  they  do"— Though  I   am   unpitied,    unprotected, 
forgive   my  murderers.     Admirers  of  sublimity,  in   action! 
Eulogists  of  human  virtue  !  Heralds  of  the  boasted   deliv- 
erers of  mankind  !— Go   from   this   scene   to   the  history  of 
your  legislators,  your  heroes,  and  your  saints,  and  worship 
at  their  shrines  :  "  but  God  forbid  that  I  should  glory,  save 
in  the  cross  of  our   Lord  Jesus  Christ" — This  crucifies  the 
world  to   me,  and  me   unto  the  world.     Which  of  its  stand- 
ards of  greatness  can  I   boast,  and   not  debase   that  nature 
which  the   cross  adorned  ?— Which  of  its  models  -of  right- 
eousness can  I  propose  to  my  imitation,  in  consciousness  of 
immortality,  and  with  the  hope  of  glory  ? 

3.  But,  in  the  third  place,  we  exult  only  in  the  cross  of 
Christ,  because  it  lays  the  only  foundation  of  a  sinner's  ac- 
ceptance with  God.  "  Other  foundation  can  no  man  lay 
than  that  is  laid  ;  which  is  Jesus  Christ."  Pitiable  for  his 
ignorance  of  his  obligations,  and  for  the  obliquity  of  his 
conscience,  is  the  man,  who  imagines  that  God  sent  his  Son 
into  the  world,  merely  to  be  admired—to  give  man  an  ex- 
ample of  virtue,  and  new  motives  to  practise  it ;,.  without 
providing  a  remedy  for  his  guilt,  or  a  fountain  for  the  puri- 


184  SERMON  XIII. 

fication  of  his  polluted  heart.  Man  even  innocent  has  no 
no  claim  on  life :  but  guilty,  and  unholy,  he  forfeits  happi- 
ness. On  this  point,  the  Law  and  the  Gospel  speak  one  lan- 
guage. The  cross  of  Christ,  is  divested  of  its  chief  glory, 
by  the  supposition  of  man's  innocence,  of  his  competence  to 
relieve  himself  from  guilt,  or  recover  himself  to  virtue.  To 
have  died  for  the  righteous,  was  unnecessary.  The  law  was 
not  made  for  them.  To  have  died  merely  as  a  martyr  to 
truth,  would  have  been  ineffectual,  for  any  other  end  than 
the  vindication  of  the  truth.  God  commendeth  his  love  to- 
wards us,  in  that  Christ  died  for  us  while  enemies.  The 
blood  of  Abel,  on  any  other  supposition,  speaks  as  indiffer- 
ent a  language  as  his.  The  Mosaic  ritual  loses  its  signifi- 
cance, and  is  not  even  a  shadow  of  Christ's  propitiatory  sac- 
rifice, if  it  cleanse  not  the  believer  from  sin.  The  hope  set 
before  us  in  the  Gospel,  is  a  spider's  web,  and  a  snare,  if 
Christ's  offering  perfect  not  the  sanctified.  And  what  but  a 
phantom,  is  peace  with  God,  if  the  curse  man's  sins  invoke, 
has  not  been  sustained  in  the  person  of  the  crucified  ?  No 
liberty  of  access  to  God,  is  offered  to  the  sinner,  nor  encour- 
agement to  repentance ;  nor  is  any  holy  fear  begotten  in  the 
human  heart,  by  a  gospel  subversive  of  this  doctrine.  The 
flaming  sword  which  guarded  the  tree  of  life,  had  found  its 
scabbard,  only  in  the  transgressor's  heart,  had  not  Jesus 
stood  between,  and  received  its  envenomed  point ;  and  every 
conscience,  when  awakened  from  its  slumbers,  yields  to  a 
conviction  of  this  truth.  Wherewith,  then,  shall  we  come  be- 
fore the  Lord  ?  Sacrifice  thousands  of  rams,  and  rivers  of 
oil ;  or  the  fruit  of  the  body,  for  the  sin  of  the  soul,  and  con- 
science will  answer,  all  these  were  God's  before  :  such  sac- 
rifices make  nothing  perfect,  as  pertaining  to  the  conscience. 
There  must  be  a  better  hope  brought  in.  Will  you  find  it 
in  your  repentances  ?  Have  you  the  assurance  of  God,  that 
a  broken  heart  is  not  a  despicable  offering  ?  Tis  true — but 


SERMON  XIII.  185 

where,  save  in  the  cross  of  Christ,  was  ever  found  an  efficient 
motive  to  repentance  ?  Derived  from  any  other  views  than 
this  presents,  man's  repentance  is  as  mercenary  and  servile, 
as  are  his  sins.  No  man  cometh  to  the  Father  but  by  him. 
None,  but  by  this  Prophet,  knoweth  the  Father :  nor  even 
by  him  as  a  Prophet  merely  ;  but  I,  "  if  I  be  lifted  up,  will 
draw  all  men  to  me"' — and  "  they  shall  look  upon  him  whom 
they  have  pierced  and  mourn."  His  soul  is  the  only  effica- 
cious offering  for  sin.  By  the  knowledge  of  him  who  has 
borne  their  iniquities,  is  the  end  of  his  sufferings  accomplish- 
ed, and  the  many  transgressors  are  justified.  In  staying  the 
wrath  of  God,  the  throne  of  justice  is  supported,  and  its  ex- 
actions answered,  only  by  his  obedience  unto  death.  Is  this 
the  language  of  earth  only,  and  an  obscured  vision  ?  What 
means  that  voice,  then,  from  the  abodes  of  the  just  ?  What 
mean  those  ascriptions  of  glory  to  the  Lamb,  who  loved  us 
and  washed  our  filthy  garments  in  his  blood  ?  Some  sinners 
are  confessedly,  before  the  throne  of  God — They  walk  the 
city  of  the  Great  King.  But  nothing  enters  there  which  de- 
fileth.  Their  righteousness  is  not  the  basis  of  their  thrones. 
Whence  then  their  spotlessness  ?  Has  their  repentance  ob- 
tained redemption  for  them,  and  adoption,  and  the  inheri- 
tance of  sons  ?  No  !  they  have  entered  into  the  holiest  by 
his  blood,  who  has  redeemed  them  to  God  ;  and  who  is  made 
unto  them  wisdom,  righteousness,  and  redemption.  In  him 
they  are  justified — in  his  cross,  therefore,  they  glory.  The 
gospel  itself,  as  the  ministration  of  the  Spirit,  and  the  power 
of  God,  has  its  efficacy,  as  well  as  its  origin,  in  his  blood. 
The  agency  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  without  which  man  will  not 
seek  deliverance,  was  a  gift  for  which  Jesus  pledged  his  life ; 
and  it  was  only  when  he  redeemed  that  pledge,  that  the 
Spirit,  in  his  promised  copiousness,  came  down.  Fly  then, 
poor  Pagan  !  to  your  obscene  and  bloody  rites,  and  immo- 
late the  body  to  redeem  the  soul.  Rest,  deluded  Catholic  ! 
24 


186  SERMON  XIII. 

on  the  intercession  of  your  Virgin,  and  your  canonized 
Saint,  the  refining  fires  of  purgatory,  or  the  merit  of  super- 
numerary works.  And  ye,  not  less  deluded  Protestants  ! 
who  would  be  justified  by  the  Law,  look,  if  ye  will,  to  your 
own  rectitude  for  the  crown  of  life.  Face  the  Judge  of 
men,  and  claim  a  seat  with  him,  by  virtue  of  your  repen- 
tance, love,  and  obedience.  Let  the  man  of  this  world  too, 
regardless  of  every  religious  system,  exult  in  his  superiority 
to  prejudice  ;  and  trust,  for  future  peace,  to  an  undefined, 
and  unchristian  mercy.  "But  God  forbid  that  I  should 
glory,  save  in  the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ" — "In 
whom  I  live  ;  and  yet  not  I,  but  he  in  me" — In  whom  are 
hid  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge — In  whom 
alone,  a  sinner  finds  his  wealth,  his  pleasure,  his  renown,  his 
hope,  his  righteousness,  his  all. 

4.  The  cross  of  Christ  alone,  in  the  fourth  place,  spreads 
before  us,  in  one  harmonious  view,  the  perfections  of  the 
Deity.  It  is  possible  for  man  to  discover  something  of  the 
grandeur  of  God,  in  the  works  of  his  creative  power,  and 
skill.  In  those  heavens  which  he  has  spread  out  as  a  cur- 
tain— in  this  variegated  earth,  peopled  and  supported  by  his 
bounty.  Something  of  his  moral  nature,  is  discoverable  by 
the  reasoning  mind,  in  the  providence  which  guides  and  gov- 
erns all — in  the  cheerful  and  genial  sun,  daily  rising  on  the 
evil  and  the  good — in  the  fertilizing  rain,  descending  on  the 
unthankful  and  the  just.  His  justice  now  and  then  breaks 
out — a  foretaste  of  the  sinner's  doom,  and  that  of  all  the 
nations  who  forget  God — burning  here,  on  the  cities  set  forth 
as  an  example  of  eternal  vengeance:  and  there,  taking  a 
range  more  entirely  corresponding  with  the  universal  cor- 
ruption of  man,  and  deluging  the  world.  But  these,  and 
more  than  these  perfections,  concentrate  and  pour  in  full 
radiance  on  the  soul,  when  reflected  from  the  face  of  Jesus 


SERMON  XIII.  187 

Christ.  Here  is  more  than  the  beneficence  which  was  sung 
at  the  birth  of  nature — It  is  the  mercy  and  wisdom  of  a 
God,  combined  to  restore  the  beauty  of  a  creation,  shrouded 
in  darkness,  and  defaced,  deranged,  and  cursed,  by  sin. 
Here  too,  in  awful  glory,  is  exhibited  that  love  of  holiness, 
which,  coming  in  competition  with  parental  pity,  pierces  the 
bosom  of  an  only  and  beloved  Son,  to  give  honor  to  regal 
authority.  Benevolence  and  purity,  here  meet  together,  and 
are  blended  with  a  prescience,  and  regard  to  truth  ;  with 
pity  for  the  sinner,  and  support  for  the  majesty  of  a  God, 
such  as  no  pencil,  no  conception  can  reach.  God  is  just, 
and  cannot  let  the  guilty  live — God  is  love,  and  will  not  let 
the  sinner  die.  God  is  great  in  counsel,  and  mighty  in 
work  :  a  device,  therefore,  and  its  execution,  cannot  be  want- 
ing, to  the  great  end  of  illustrating  all  his  attributes,  and 
rescuing  his  name  and  government  from  reproach,  and  the 
enemies  of  his  kingdom  from  bearing  that  reproach  in  their 
own  bosom.  In  the  cross  of  Christ,  I  see  the  harmony  of 
the  divine  attributes,  while  its  mighty  sufferer  lifts  his  eye  to 
heaven,  and  cries — "the  reproaches  of  them  that  reproach- 
ed thee,  be  upon  me."  'Tis  done — on  him  they  fall  ;  and 
nature  draws  over  her  whole  form,  the  veil  of  mourning, 
while  her  author  takes  on  his  innocent  head  the  reproaches 
which  the  guilty  must  otherwise  have  borne.  Terms  of  re- 
conciliation are  put  into  his  hands,  and  the  believing,  hum- 
bled rebel,  lives.  "O  the  depth  of  the  riches,  both  of  the 
wisdom  and  knowledge  of  God" — How  unsearchable  the 
judgment !  How  unutterable  the  grace  !  In  a  train  of  re- 
deemed sinners,  the  sufferer  sees  the  fruit  of  the  agonies  for 
which  lie  endured  the  cross ;  and  his  immortal  seed  of  every 
nation,  and  people,  and  kindred,  and  tongue,  counting  all 
things  loss,  and  renouncing  all  other  boasts  for  the  knowledge 
of  him,  bow  the  knee,  and   glory  only  in  the    Lord.     Let 


188  SERMON  XIII. 

"  the  poor  Indian,"  and  his   mistaken  "  eulogist   of  tutor'd 
mind," 

"  See  God  in  clouds,  and  hear  him  in  the  wind." 
Let  the  Philosopher  content  himself  to  ascend,  through  the 
laws  of  matter,  and  by  force  of  intellect  alone,  to  nature's 
God.  This,  this  only,  is  eternal  life,  to  know  the  true  God, 
through  the  cross  of  Christ.  He  only  has  cause  for  glory- 
ing, who  glories  in  this,  that  he  understandeth  that  the  Lord 
exercises  truth,  and  loving  kindness,  and  forgiveness  in  the 
earth,  because  in  these  things  he  delights.  Here  alone,  in 
coming  to  Christ,  man,  heavy-laden  with  sin,  finds  rest  unto 
his  soul.  And  here  we  might  stop,  and  say  without  hyper- 
bole, our  cup  runneth  over,  did  not  something  more  than 
grateful  recollections  become  a  sinner,  having  such  a  foun- 
dation for  triumph  in  the  Lord. 

II.  But,  brethren,  if  this  be  our  boast,  we  shall  evince  our 
attachment  to  the  cross,  by  those  principles  and  habits  of 
life,  which  correspond  with  the  figure  in  the  text — We  shall 
prove,  by  being  no  more  conformed  to  the  world,  that  we 
are  crucified  with  Christ.  It  is  indispensable  to  this,  and  an 
essential  part  of  our  salvation,  that  we  be  "planted  in  the 
likeness  of  Christ's  death."  Superiority  to  the  world,  is  the 
appropriate  evidence  of  the  crucifixion  of  those  corrupt  af- 
fections, which  live  and  reign,  with  unsubdued  sway,  while 
the  likeness  of  the  first  Adam  remain.  Whoever  is  dead  to 
sin,  is  released  also  from  its  guilt;  and,  transplanted  into 
another  region,  he  grows  up  with  Christ,  in  a  kingdom  not 
of  this  world — is  nourished  by  the  same  root,  and  bears 
fruit  of  the  same  spiritual  and  immortal  nature.  The  whole 
body  of  sin,  like  that  of  Christ,  is  dead — the  old  nature  has 
no  more  dominion  over  us.  Oh  !  my  brethren,  the  objects 
of  this  world  can  satisfy  no  other  than  the  man  who  loves 
the  world.  But  in  that  man,  said  our  great  Prophet,  dwells 
not  the  love  of  the  Father.     They  who  .crucified  the  Son  of 


SERMON  XII).  1*89 

God,  would  have  cheerfully  marched  with  him  to  death,  had 
he  assumed  the  purple  aud  the  sceptre  ;  and,  instead  of  con- 
flicting with  spiritual  wickedness,  vaulted  into  the  imperial 
throne.  Far  nobler  were  the  objects,  Jesus  sought  for  his 
Father,  and  for  you.  He  came  to  emancipate  the  soul,  from 
the  fetters  of  ignorance  and  sin — to  free  the  guilty  from  their 
condemnation,  and  the  Father's  name  from  scandal ;  by  en- 
lightening the  understanding,  exposing  the  vanity,  and  con- 
founding the  pride,  of  man — By  establishing  new  principles 
of  action,  subduing  the  lusts,  and  correcting  the  fond  expec- 
tations of  the  deceitful  heart.  He  came  to  change  the  pur- 
suits, and  maxims,  and  spirit,  of  the  world  ;  and  to  lead  up 
the  moral  wanderer,  through  the  valley  of  humiliation, 
to  the  mansions  of  glory,  in  his  Father's  house.  Conformity 
to  his  purposes,  is  conformity  to  his  cross.  The  world  have 
no  such  ends  to  answer.  If  they  could  purchase  an  interest 
in  his  kingdom,  self-denial  and  mortification  to  the  world, 
would  be  too  great  a  price.  Yet  an  interest  in  this  kingdom 
begins  with  this  figure,  and  adheres  to  it,  through  all  the 
stages  of  our  progress  to  the  consummation  of  its  glory. 
"He  that  beareth  not  his  cross,  cannot  be  my  disciple." 
Friendship  with  both  kingdoms,  is  an  impossibility  which 
God  has  not  required.  The  hopes  of  men,  therefore,  who 
are  resolved  to  maintain  friendship  with  the  world,  are  ut- 
terly extinguished  by  the  doctrine  of  the  cross.  As  the  world 
can  love  only  its  own,  and  christians  are  not  of  the  world, 
they  are  necessarily  subjected,  like  the  Master,  to  the  same 
kind  of  conflict  and  suffering.  They  must  sustain  its  pity, 
forsake  its  guilty  pursuits  and  pleasures,  and  endure  its  in- 
difference, suspicion  and  contempt.  But  for  this,  any  man 
might  prove  his  attachment  to  the  cross.  Who,  for  example, 
would  be  scandalized,  if  he  might  revenge  his  own  wrongs — 
if  he  might  give  scope  to  the  passions  which  the  world  in- 
flames by  its  allurements,  or  provokes  by  its  injustice — if  he 


I0O  SERMON  XIII. 

might  "seek first?'  any  other  than  "the  kingdom  of  God, 
and  his  righteousness" — if,  in  short,  he  might  glory  in  his 
wisdom,  or  virtue,  or  pleasures,  or  riches,  or  any  thing  hu- 
man, and  be  still  a  christian?  Every  mark  of  discipleship 
is  a  contradiction  of  such  desires.  It  is  the  prostration  of 
his  pride,  the  restraint  of  his  foolish  imagination,  the  sub- 
jugation of  every  corrupt  propensity,  which  render  him 
the  lively  image  of  a  meek,  forgiving,  lowly,  submissive, 
crucified  Saviour.  The  spirit  which  leads  the  sinner 
to  make  the  world,  or  self,  his  idol,  implies  contempt 
of  the  cross  of  Christ.  This  cross-bearing  spirit,  (as 
every  man  who  has  tried  it  knows)  is  a  willingness  to 
suffer  for  well-doing.  What  kind  of  martyrs  for  the  .tes- 
timony of  Jesus,  would  the  Apostles  have  made,  had  they 
courted  the  friendship  of  the  worlds  Had  they  loved  ease, 
or  pleasure  ? — Had  they  been  unable  to  bear  the  "  proud 
man's  contumely,"  the  libertine's  wit,  the  moralist's  sneer, 
the  scoffer's  taunts,  and  the  drunkard's  song  ? — Had  they 
chosen  to  enjoy  the  smiles  of  popular  favor,  a  reputation  for 
prudence,  and  any  x)f  .the  blandishments  of  human  glory, 
rather  than  the  whispers  of  a  peaceful  conscience  with  tribu- 
lation ;  or  with  reproach  from  man,  the  approbation  of  God*? 
Dare  a  man  of  such  preferences  say,  "  I  am  not  ashamed  of 
the  gospel  of  Christ."  Or,  whatever  his  pretensions,  says 
his  life  so  ?  Let  no  man  talk  of  christian  virtue,  who  so  de- 
tracts from  his  Master's  honor,  to  preserve  his  own — who 
connives  at  sin,  under  the  pretext  of  securing  respect  for  his 
religion;  and  who  would  rather  hazard  the  loss  of  a  soul, 
than  incur  the  reproach  of  illiberality,  and  the  retort  of  the 
scorner — "  heal  thyself."  Such  an  one  bears  not  in  his 
body,  the  marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  nor  is  the  life  of  Jesus 
manifest  in  him. 

2.     Next  to  fellowship  in  Christ's  sufferings,  we  are  to 
prove  our  attachment  to  the  cross,  by  a  marked  complacen- 


SERMON  XIII.  191 

cy  in  the  scheme  of  man's  redemption.  I  tremble  for  that 
soul,  which  shrinks  from  the  duty  of  confessing  the  truth  as 
it  is  in  Jesus.  "  God  manifest  in  the  flesh,"  is  a  subject, 
into  whose  connexions,  design,  and  influence,  the  angels, 
who  have  no  personal  interest  in  it,  "  desire  to  look." 
Where  the  treasure  is,  the  heart  will  be.  Man  is  always 
most  conversant,  with  what  he  most  loves.  The  vine  which 
depends  for  its  support  upon  the  tree,  will  wind  around  and 
cling  to  it.  Delighting  in  the  plan  of  redemption,  it  will  be 
the  frequent  subject  of  our  admiring  and  grateful  contem- 
plation :  and  our  love  will  disclose,  and  diffuse  itself,  by 
every  organ  of  communication.  How  did  it  open  the  lips, 
suffuse  the  eye,  and  move  the  limbs,  of  him,  who,  that  he 
might  win  Christ,  counted  all  things  loss  !  How  did  he  de- 
light to  abase  himself,  and  magnify  his  office,  just  as  by 
these  means,  God  was  to  be  exalted  !  Paul,  though  he  would 
not  deny  his  conversion,  still  esteemed  himself,  the  least 
of  saints  ;  and  in  view  of  the  grace  he  had  long  resisted,  in- 
sisted upon  being  counted  the  chief  of  sinners.  Nay, 
though  not  conscious  of  being  surpassed  in  learning,  or  gifts, 
by  any  of  them,  he  was  content  to  be  called  the  least  of  the 
Apostles — To  be  the  servant  of  all,  and  to  be  ranked  by  the 
world,  with  the  offscouring  of  the  earth.  Behold  this  con- 
vert from  Judaism  in  the  scenes  of  his  public  life — or  follow 
him  to  the  places  of  his  retirement,  and,  prominent  in  all, 
you  see  the  Lord  of  glory.  In  the  market  and  the  syna- 
gogue— at  tent-making,  or  in  prison — Jesus  Christ,  and  him 
crucified,  is  all  his  theme.  Arraigned  as  a  felon,  or  about 
to  receive  the  honors  of  a  pagan  Deity — mingling  with  the 
mob  who  are  sworn  to  kill  him,  or  seated  with  the  renown- 
ed scholars  of  Athens — in  the  theatre,  or  in  the  boat — tear- 
ing himself  from  his  christian  friends,  or  exposed,  by  the 
slander  of  false  Apostles,  to  lose  his  influence  with  the 
church — not  Paul,  but  Jesus  Christ,  is  the  burden  of  his 


192  SERMON  XIII. 

story.  That  he  may  be  magnified,  in  his  life  and  in  his 
death,  is  the  language  alike  of  his  actions  and  his  lips.  To 
live,  is  Christ ;  and  to  depart,  gain,  so  he  may  be  with  him. 
Whenever  he  may  speak  of  him,  though  in  chains,  he  en- 
joys freedom — whenever  he  may  exalt  him,  though  it  be  in  the 
darkness  and  silence  of  midnight  suffering,  there  he  sings 
praises  (without  a  note  of  sadness)  to  God.  But  was  Chris- 
tianity in  him  then,  a  different  thing,  from  Christianity  in  any 
man,  now  ?  Does  the  same  cause  produce  opposite  effects  ? 
Or  is  complacency  in  the  scheme  of  redemption  in  one  age, 
the  spring  of  all  that  is  noble  in  principle,  and  generous  in 
action,  and  any  thing  that  is  pitiful,  base,  and  dastardly,  in 
another  ?  Did  it  make  the  first  christians  bold  for  God,  and 
enterprizing  in  behalf  of  his  kingdom,  and  does  it  makez«s 
afraid  to  defend  the  truth,  relating  to  a  brother,  or  to  Christ  ? 
No,  believe  me,  that  "  charity  which  seeketh  not  her  own," 
and  which  is  neither  "  easily  provoked"  nor  "  puffed  up," 
has  changed  neither  her  nature  nor  her  dress.  It  still  gives 
to  every  man  his  due,  to  God  exclusively,  the  glory  of  man's 
salvation.  To  conquer  self,  and  overcome  the  world,  this 
is  still  the  victory  of  Faith. 

3.  A  third  mark  of  attachment  to  the  cross  of  Christ,  is 
the  public  confession  of  him  before  men  ;  especially,  in  the 
visible  commemoration  of  his  death,  and  a  corresponding 
walk  in  him.  The  test  he  has  given  us  of  friendship  to  him, 
is  the  universal  observance  of  his  precepts  and  ordinances. 
What  lover  of  his  country,  delights  not  to  commemorate  her 
deliverance  ?  who  is  not  refreshed,  by  the  story  of  the  sacri- 
fices and  the  virtues,  through  which  we  inherit  our  religious 
and  civil  rights  ?  Is  any  such  man  afraid  to  profess  his  at- 
tachment to  the  memory  of  his  ancestors,  lest  he  should 
prove  unworthy  of  them  ?  Must  we  never  weep  over  the 
grave  of  departed  worth,  lest  we  should  remember  and  feel 
our  obligations  to  love  and  imitate  it  ?    Is  this  the  character 


SERMON  XIII.  193 

of  a  friend — attached  above  all  things  to  the  cross  of  Christ  ? 
Does  such  a  heart  stand  aloof,  from  the  memorial  of  the 
most  stupendous  work  of  God — of  a  death  which  atoned  for 
the  sins  of  the  world — at  which  all  nature  mourned — at  the 
fruits  of  which,  all  heaven  rejoices  ?  Does  friendship,  and 
respect,  for  Christ,  prompt  a  man  to  turn  his  back  upon  the 
memorial  of  a  deliverer,  who  has  taught  us  to  associate  with 
it,  nothing  but  thoughts  of  peace  and  good  will  to  man,  with 
glory  to  God  in  our  salvation  ?  Who  can  love  a  theme, 
which  illustrates  all  the  perfections  of  his  Maker,  Redeemer, 
and  Judge,  and  not  hail  the  day  on  which  he  rose,  and  tri- 
umphed over  sin,  and  not  come  to  the  table  which  brings  his 
cross,  and  crown,  to  our  remembrance  ;  and  bids  us,  if  we 
hunger,  take  freely  of  the  bread  of  God  ;  if  we  thirst,  for 
the  waters  of  life,  to  come  and  drink  without, money  and 
without  price  ?  Is  such  thy  kindness  to  thy  friends  ?  Oh  ! 
who  ever  exulted  in  the  thought  of  freedom  from  sin,  and  yet 
was  unwilling,  for  any  cause,  to  partake  in  the  spoils  and 
the  triumph  offered  him  by  him  who  has  slain  this  monster? 
On  what  sad  day,  do  these  sacred  symbols  return  to  greet 
our  eyes,  and  he  who  loves  the  Saviour  say — "  but  not  to 
me  return  ?"  Who  turns  away  from  this  table,  merely  out 
of  love  to  his  dying  friend  ;  or  because  he  would  have  his 
love  invigorated,  and  his  humility  increased,  and  his  sorrow 
for  sin  rendered  deeper,  and  his  zeal  and  gratitude,  made  to 
burn  with  intenser  flame  ?  Who  excuses  himself  from  this 
feast,  that  he  may  have  a  more  voluntary,  and  happy  exile, 
from  all  the  world,  that  he  may  be  more  abstracted  from 
himself  and  enjoy  more  close  communion  with  his  Lord  .? 
Oh  !  be  cautious,  beloved  hearer,  lest  you  go  away,  when 
Jesus  invites  you,  because  you  have  no  relish  for  that  cross, 
which  places  true  glory  at  a  point,  beyond  the  goal  of  your 
ambition — Because  here  sit  the  fool,  and  the  wayfaring 
man  :  and  because  the  babes  who  are  here,  are  not  christian 


194  SERMON  XIII. 

enough,  for  communion  with  you.  Beware  lest  self-right- 
eousness, instead  of  a  sense  of  your  unworthiness,  carry  you 
away.  Go  if  you  choose,  but  remember,  it  is  as  easy  for 
him  who  eateth  not,  as  for  him  who  dippeth  in  the  dish  with 
Christ,  to  lift  up  the  heel  against  him.  You  see  the  danger 
on  one  side  only ;  Christ,  when  he  bids  you  come,  looks  on 
both. 

4.  Finally,  he  only  evinces  his  attachment  to  the  cross, 
and  glories  in  that  alone,  who,  in  the  great  object  of  his  pur- 
suit, co-operates  with  God  to  the  end  for  which  he  gave  his 
Son  to  death.  We  therefore,  as  co-workers  with  him,  be- 
seech you,  hearers  !  that  ye  receive  not  the  grace  of  God  in 
vain.  But  for  what  end  did  he  die?  Was  it  not  to  redeem 
us  from  all  iniquity,  and  to  purify  unto  himself  a  peculiar 
people,  zealous  of  good  works  ?  you  look  in  vain  to  Christ, 
if  you  lose  sight  of  this.  He  has  meekly  borne  every  other 
indignity,  but  he  will  never  consent  to  this — He  will  not  be 
made  the  minister  of  sin.  In  vain  you  turn  your  eye  to  Cal- 
vary, if  you  are  not  changed  into  the  image  of  the  Saviour. 
The  tree  which  bore  our  sins,  saves  no  man  who  has  nothing 
of  the  benevolence  which  planted  it,  nor  of  the  mercy  which 
dropped  from  it.  Its  fruit,  is  for  the  healing  of  the  wound 
which  sin  has  made.  To  that  end  direct  your  eye  to  it,  and 
Christ's  death  becomes  the  price,  and  his  resurrection  the 
pledge,  of  your  happy  immortality.  Unsanctified  by  that 
temper  of  love,  which  held  to  the  latest  breath  the  spirit  of 
forgiveness,  Christ  to  you  is  dead  in  vain.  If  any  man  be 
devoid  of  his  spirit,  he  is  none  of  his.  They  are  the  men 
glorying  only  in  his  cross,  who  do  his  will.  They  are  cru- 
cified to  the  world,  and  the  world  unto  them — They  walk 
humbly  with  God.  They  will  be  calm,  when  the  last  thun- 
ders roll  :  and  the  voice  which  pronounces  man's  final  doom, 
will  be  to  them  sweet  as  the  harps  of  the  angelic  choir.  Who 
would  not  be  crucified  for  an  eternity  of  such  bliss  ? 


SERMON   XIV. 


♦•©•< 


THE    MOUNT    OF    REFUGE. 


Genesis,  xix.  1J. 


Escape  for  thy  life — look  not  behind  thee — neither   tarry  thou  in 
all  the  plain.     Escape  to  the  mountain,  lest  thou  be  consumed. 

J.  HE  history  of  Lot,  and  especially  that  part  of  it  to  which 
this  passage  refers,  exemplifies  the  apostolic  intimation,  that 
the  righteous  being  scarcely  saved,  there  is  no  hope  for  the 
ungodly  and  the  sinner.  His  wife,  his  children,  his  proper- 
ty, were  all  destroyed,  with  every  thing  pertaining  to  that 
wicked  city  which  he  had  chosen  for  the  place  of  his  resi- 
dence, and  he  himself  did  but  escape.  He  should  not  have 
chosen  such  a  city  for  his  residence.  The  prospect  of  gain, 
was  but  a  wretched  prospect ;  and  its  fullest  acquisition,  a 
miserable  compensation  for  the  evils  to  which  he  subjected 
himself,  by  removing  to  a  place  where  the  ordinances  of  re- 
ligion were  unknown,  and  dissipation  and  iniquity  were  uni- 
versal. But  besides  the  certain  vexation  to  which  he  ex- 
posed himself  daily,  by  taking  up  his  abode  in  such  a  place, 


196  SERMON  XIV. 

and  indulging  in  intercourse  with  such  a  people  ;  he  put  the 
welfare  of  his  family  in  jeopardy,  and  though  he  himself 
*n  was  saved,  they  became  a  prey  to  the  contagion  of  bad  ex- 
ample, and  perished  with  the  wicked  citizens  of  Sodom. 
But  righteous  men  are  not  always  wise,  and  but  for  divine 
grace,  their  own  indiscretions  would  ruin  them. 

God  having  commissioned  his  angels  to  destroy  the  city, 
(none  righteous  being  found  there,  save  this  one  man)  they 
entered  Lot's  house,  warned  him  of  his  danger,  and  informed 
him  of  the  possibility  of  his  seasonable  retreat.  Believing 
unhesitatingly  the  word  of  the  Lord,  he  went  out  to  commu- 
cate  the  intelligence  to  his  family  friends,  his  children  es- 
pecially, who  were  settled  around  him,  and  urge  them  to 
partake,  with  him,  in  the  benefit  of  the  kind  admonition. 
But  being  unsuccessful  in  persuading  them  of  their  danger, 
he  lingered  to  expostulate  with  them.  Perceiving  this,  the 
angels  laid  hold  upon  him,  his  wife,  and  daughters,  and 
urged  them  violently  out  of  the  city  ;  and  having  thus  far 
secured  them  from  immediate  ruin,  thus  addressed  him — 
"  Escape  for  thy  life— look  not  behind  thee — neither  tarry 
thou  in  all  the  plain.  Escape  to  the  mountain,  lest  thou  be 
'  consumed." 

The  obvious  analogy  between  the  case  just  described,  and 
impenitent  sinners,  will  lead  us  from  the  history  to  the  doc- 
trine. Was  the  city  in  which  Lot  dwelt,  devoted  to  destruc- 
tion ?— So  are  all  men  under  the  Law's  condemnation.  Were 
Lot  and  his  family,  kindly  provided  a  refuge  from  the  im- 
pending ruin  ? — So  are  the  impenitent  under  the  Gospel. 
Were  the  one  shown  the  mount  of  safety,  and  urgently  en- 
treated to  make  good  their  escape  to  it  ? — So  are  the  other. 
Did  the  salvation  of  Lot  and  his  family,  depend  on  their  sea- 
sonable flight  from  the  city,  and  the  plains,  of  Sodom  ? — So 
does  that  of  the  sinner,  on  his  seasonable  flight  to  Christ, 
the  only  refuge  from  death.     The  admonition  of.  the   text, 


SERMON  XIV.  197 

then,  addressed  to  Lot,  by  the  angels  of  God's  mere)',  may 
be  considered  as  the  voice  of  God's  embassadors  to  men, 
condemned  and  ready  to  perish. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  was  the  city  of  Sodom,  in  which 
Lot  dwelt,  devoted  to  destruction  ? — So  are  all  the  trans- 
gressors of  God's  law,  while  they  remain  under  its  condem- 
nation. The  whole  history  of  the  plan  and  execution  of  the 
work  of  redemption,  presupposes,  and  is  built  upon,  the  fact, 
that  the  soul  that  sins  must  die.  The  great  end  of  the  gift  of 
Christ  to  the  world,  was  to  magnify  the  law,  and  redeem 
them  who  were  under  its  curse.  Why  else,  if  we  make  our 
reason  the  umpire,  should  such  a  plan  have  been  originated  ? 
Why  should  the  Son  of  God  be  manifested — why  be  holden 
to  perfect  obedience  to  the  law — and  why  suffer  its  curse  ? 
Why  should  his  mediation  become  necessary  to  human  safety 
and  happiness,  on  any  other  supposition,  than  that  our  title 
to  life  was  lost,  and  our  subjection  to  the  law's  penalty  un- 
questionable ?  And  if  our  own  reason  establishes  the  con- 
clusion, that  by  law  no  man  is  justified,  but  all  devoted  to 
destruction,  much  more  do  the  explicit  declarations  of  Christ, 
and  his  witnesses,  render  clear  and  certain  this  doctrinal 
verity.  "Cursed  is  every  one  that  continueth  not  in  all 
things,  written  in  the  book  of  the  law,  to  do  them?' — is  the 
unchangeable,  and  uniform  tenor,  of  the  revelations  both  of 
Moses  and  of  Christ.  That  wickedness,  which  is  explicitly 
declared  by  an  Apostle,  to  consist  only  in  the  violation  of 
the  law,  is,  with  equal  explicitness,  declared,  by  Apostles, 
and  Christ  himself,  to  have  incurred  "the  damnation  of  hell." 
Resting  in  these  assurances,  Christ  appealed  to  the  Phari- 
sees themselves,  whether  there  existed  a  possibility  of  es- 
cape, since  both  Jews  and  Gentiles  are  confessedly  under  the 
law,  alike  transgressors  of  it,  and  therefore,  all  concluded 
under  sin  :  so  that  on  this  charge,  every  mouth  is  stopped, 
and  the  whole  world  is  become  guilty  before  God.      It  has 


198  SERMON  XIV. 

indeed  been  said,  'the  law  was  peculiar  to  the  Jews  as  a  rule 
of  life.'  But  the  Apostle  denies  it ;  and  alleges,  that  every 
moral  agent  is  alike  condemned  by  it,  though  to  all  it  has 
not  come  in  the  same  form  of  exhibition.  Even  the  heathen 
have  the  substance  of  it  written  on  their  consciences,  and  so 
are  a  law  unto  themselves  :  ;yet  neither  they,  nor  the  Jews, 
nor  sinners  under  the  gospel,  have  fulfilled  it.  They  are, 
of  consequence,  condemned  by  it,  and  devoted  to  destruc- 
tion. 

Nor  is  God  unrighteous  who  taketh  vengeance.  It  is  a 
common  artifice  of  the  sinful  heart  to  suppose,  since  Christ 
died  to  redeem  us  from  the  curse  of  the  law,  that  his  inter- 
cession is  prevalent  for  this  end,  without  regard  to  any 
change  in  the  character  of  the  transgressor.  But  here  both 
the  analogy,  and  scriptural  facts  and  doctrines,  fail  to  sup- 
port, or  even  to  render  plausible,  the  conjecture.  Abraham 
interceded  for  the  devoted  city;  but  his  intercession  failed, 
in  all  the  extent  in  which  its  inhabitants  were  unrighteous. 
God  would  have  spared  it  for  fifty,  at  his  request — for  thir- 
ty— for  twenty — for  "ten — but  they  were  not  found.  That 
intercession,  like  Christ's,  was  applicable  only  to  the  right- 
•  eous.  "I pray  for  these,"  said  Christ,  "  I  pray  not  for  the 
world."  It  would  defeat  the  very  end  of  his  mediation,  to 
save  the  wicked,  any  further  than  they  are  saved  from  their 
wickedness.  Their  state  cannot  be  changed,  but  by  a 
change  of  character.  His  object  was  to  vindicate,  not  de- 
stroy the  law — to  magnify,  not  dishonor  it.  Therefore  he 
is  said  "  to  save  his  people  from  their  sins  ;"  otherwise,  he 
would  be  "  the  minister  of  sin.'*  The  law  would  be  made 
void,  even  in  the  salvation  of  the  believer,  were  not  faith  a 
purifier  of  the  heart.  But  God  forbid,  we  should  make  void 
the  law,  says  the  Apostle,  by  preaching  peace,  through 
Christ,  to  the  believer  :  on  the  contrary,  we  thus  establish 
the  law.     Beyond  all  doubt  then,  every  transgressor  is  as 


SERMON  XIV.  199 

certainly,  before  faith,  devoted  to  destruction,  as  he  is  under 
the  law's  condemnation;  and  Christ's  having  borne  the  curse, 
can  profit  him  nothing.  Other  arguments  equally  unan- 
swerable, are  not  wanting  to  confirm  this  position,  but  others 
are  not  necessary.  As  to  Lot,  therefore,  in  the  devoted 
city,  the  Angel  of  mercy  cried,  "  escape  for  thy  life  ;,f  so 
are  the  embassadors  of  Christ  instructed  to  lift  up  the  voice 
of  warning  and  entreaty,  and  exhort  sinners  under  the  gos- 
pel, to  "  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come."  We  obey  the  in- 
struction ;  and,  until  you  practically  hear,  proclaim  the  fact, 
that  the  wrath  of  God  abideth  on  you. 

2.  Secondly,  were  Lot  and  his  family  kindly  provided  a 
mount  of  refuge  from  the  impending  ruin,  and  entreated  to 
make  good  their  escape  to  it — so  are  you.  The  condemna- 
tion of  sinners,  however  just,  is  not  necessarily  final,  and  ir- 
remediable. They  are  prisoners  ;  but  they  are  "prisoners  of 
hope."  They  are  lost  ;  but  are  not  irrecoverably  lost. 
They  are  sold  under  sin  ;  but  there  is  a  ransom  price,  and  a 
Redeemer  at  hand.  They  are  dead  ;  but  may  live  again. 
"  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave  his  only  Son."  "  He 
died  the  just  for  the  unjust,  that  he  might  bring  us  to  God." 
And  what  the  mountain  was  to  Lot,  Christ  Jesus  is  to  all 
who  believe  in  him.  Hid  in  this  mountain  of  refuge,  your 
eyes  shall  behold  the  destruction  of  the  wicked,  but  the 
storm  which  overwhelms  them  shall  not  come  nigh  you. 
There  is  now  no  condemnation  to  them  who  are  in  Christ 
Jesus :  they  are  made  free  from  the  law  of  sin  and  death  : 
sin  has  no  more  dominion  over  them  :  they  are  under  grace, 
and  the  curse  of  the  law  cannot  reach  them  :  Christ  is  the 
interposing  shield  between  its  penalty  and  death,  and  its 
foice  is  spent  and  exhausted  on  this  shield.  The  believer  is 
hid  in  him,  as  in  a  sanctuary  which  no  enemy  can  approach — 
an  impregnable  fortress,  in  which  sin,  and  death,  and  hell 
combined,  can  make  no  breach.     "  It  is  God  who  justifi- 


200  SERMON  XIV. 

eth,"  through  faith  ;  "  who  is  he  that  condemneth  ?"  It  is 
Christ  who  intercedes  for  the  believer,  and  who  ever  liveth 
and  prevaileth.  "  The  Lord's  name  is  a  strong  tower,  the 
righteous  runneth  into  it  and  is  safe."  From  this  mount 
you  may  see,  on  either  hand,  the  desolating  storm  which 
you  have  avoided,  and  the  heavenly  Jerusalem  which  is  to 
be  the  everlasting  home  of  the  redeemed.  Here  you  may 
serenely  contemplate  the  dangers,  and  the  death,  you  have 
escaped  ;  and  triumphantly  sing  of  the  mercies  of  the  Lord, 
which  the  spirits  of  the  just  partake. 

Flee  then,  to  this  strong  hold,  prisoners  of  hope  !  Lay 
hold  on  the  good  set  before  you  in  the  gospel.  Set  your 
feet  on  this  Rock  of  ages  ;  and  like  Lot,  you  are  delivered 
from  the  fate  of  them,  who  were  set  forth  as  an  example  of 
the  vengeance  of  eternal  fire.  Such  is  the  language  of  God 
to  you  ;  and  the  words  of  the  Lord  are  tried  words — they 
are  pure,  and  graven  on  the  rock  forever.  "  He  that  be- 
lieved] shall  be  saved."  God  sent  not  his  Son  into  the 
world  to  condemn  it ;  but  this  is  the  Father's  will,  that  every- 
one who  seeth  the  Son;  and  believeth  on  him,  should  have 
everlasting  life.  But  remember,  there  is  salvation  in  none 
other.  No  other  name  is  known  under  heaven,  which  ap- 
proaches such  an  influence.  Embrace  the  Son  therefore, 
lest  ye  perish  from  the  way,  while  yet  it  is  open  to  your 
feet.  We  tell  you  words,  by  which  you  and  your  house- 
hold may  be  saved. 

3.  But,  in  the  third  place,  as  the  salvation  of  Lot  arid 
his  family,  depended  on  their  immediate  flight  from  the 
city,  and  the  plain,  of  Sodom  ;  so,  also,  does  your's  upon 
your  immediate  flight  to  Christ,  as  the  only  refuge  from 
destruction.  The  sons  of  Lot  mocked,  and  tarried,  and 
died  with  the  inhabitants.  The  wife  cast  but  a  longing, 
lingering  look  behind,  and,  as  a  monument  of  guilt  and  fol- 
ly, she  stands  to  this  day   a  beacon  to  mankind.     Hasten 


SERMON  XIV.  201 

then,  sinner  !  Delay  not  an  hour.  A  few  steps  will  place 
you  beyond  the  besom  of  desolation,  and  establish  your  feet 
on  the  mount  of  safety.  But  they  must  be  decisive  steps. 
The  angel  of  God  stands  pointing  you  the  way ;  the  hand 
of  mercy  grasps  your  arm  with  earnestness,  and  draws  you 
away  from  all  your  worldly  endearments.  You  would  take 
with  you,  and  even  wait  for,  them  who  mock,  or  linger.  It 
may  not  be.  Renounce  all;  forsake  all;  deny  your  very  self, 
and  follow  him.  Already  the  sound  of  the  rushing  wind  is 
heard — the  heavens  are  black — the  lightnings  streak  the 
clouds — the  sulphurous  flames  descend — the  city  is  envel- 
oped in  the  desolating  cloud.  Does  Lot  stop  now,  to  take 
the  substance  that  he  gathered  in  the  iniquitous  heap  ?  Did 
he  even  think  of  any  thing  but  life  ?  And  had  he  done  so, 
even  this  should  have  never  been  given  him  for  a  prey — he 
could  not  have  escaped.  But  here,  all  comparison  fails. 
What  was  the  life,  which  he  left  all  else  to  save  ?  A  poor, 
dying  life,  which  was  soon,  at  the  longest,  to  vanish  away. 
Not  such,  sinner !  the  life  you  are  exhorted  to  regard — the  life 
of  the  soul,  is  in  jeopardy  with  you.  Lot  might  have  been 
buried  with  the  Sodomites,  and  still  have  saved  his  soul :  / 
but  if  you  escape  not  during  your  natural  life,  your  all  is 
lost.  If,  by  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  you  are  not  freed  from  the 
condemnation  of  the  law,  the  curse  of  Jehovah  rests  upon 
you  forever.  "Escape  for  thy  life"  has,  to  you,  a  meaning 
of  far  more  solemn  import,  than  when  it  rung  upon  the 
startled  ear  of  the  stranger  on  the  plains  of  Sodom.  It  is 
eternal  life — it  is  the  immortality  brought  to  light  by  the 
gospel,  which  depends  upon  your  immediate  escape  from 
your  present  moral  condition.  And  will  you  not  fly  ?  Hear 
the  voice  of  the  angel,  if  tempted  for  any  cause  to  hesitate — 
"look  not  behind  thee,  neither  tarry  thou  in  all  the  plain. 
Escape  to  the  mountain,  lest  thou  be  consumed."  Ah  !  here 
is  your  danger — you  will  look  back  ;  and  look  still  with 
26 


\ 


202  SERMON  XIV. 

complacency,  upon  the  objects  which  procured  your  con- 
demnation— the  sinful  objects  which  are  but  fuel  to  the  de- 
vouring flame.  Escape  from  the  pollutions  which  are  in  the 
world — the  lusts  of  the  flesh — the  pleasures  of  sin.  Look 
not  back  with  delight  upon  thy  farms,  and  thy  merchandize, 
and  the  things  of  this  world  which  thou  hast  abused — upon 
thy  gains,  and  thy  goods  laid  up  in  store.  Leave  all :  for- 
sake houses  and  lands,  and  wife  and  children,  all  that  thou 
hast :  yield  every  thing  to  the  consideration,  that  life  is  de- 
pending— that  "now  is  the  accepted  time" — and  let  not  even 
the  plea  of  duty  to  thy  household  retard  thy  steps,  lest, 
while  deliberating,  thou  art  lost.  You  may  indeed  see  no 
danger,  with  the  mortal  eye  ;  but  ask  not  the  evidence  of 
the  eye,  while  you  have  that  of  the  ear.  It  is  the  voice  of 
an  angel,  which  Lot  hears  :  you  hear  the  voice  of  God.  "  Be 
not  faithless,  but  believing  :"  disobedience  is  sin  ;  and  it  is 
from  sin  you  are  to  fly — 'tis  this  you  are  to  hate,  as  death. 
Think  of  nothing  but  what  is  before  thee — the  narrow  way 
— the  mountain  of  refuge — the  celestial  city — and  run,  so  as 
to  obtain.  Let  your. eyes  look  right  onward,  and  your  eye- 
lids straight  before  you  :  the  mountain  is  in  sight.  "Look 
not  behind  thee" — thy  sympathy  may  attract  thee  to  the* 
burning  city:  some  old  companion  may  catch  thine  eye, 
and  the  eye  affect  the  heart,  and  protract  thy  stay,  and  you 
be  consumed  together.  "Look  not  behind  thee" — your 
resolution  may  be  shaken,  when  you  behold  the  goodly 
things  you  are  to  leave.  "  Look  not  behind  thee" — you 
may  forget  the  object,  for  which  your  face  is  turned  toward 
the  mountain.  "Look  not  behind  thee" — your  cumbrous 
load  of  sins  may  weigh  you  down,  and  sink  you  to  despair. 
"  Look  not  behind  thee" — it  is  distrust  of  God.  "  Look  not 
behind  thee" — perchance  they  may  be  making  merry  at 
your  precipitate  flight,  and  you  be  made  ashamed,  and  dis- 
suaded from  your  purpose.     "  Look  not  behind  thee" — your 


V 


SERMON  XIV.  203 

children  will  catch  at  the  example.  Remember  the  reward 
of  him,  who  puts  his  hand  to  the  plough,  and  looks  back — 
oi'  him  who  valued  not  his  birthright  above  his  pottage — the 
fate  of  him,  once  washed,  who  returned  to  his  wallowing  in 
the  mire.  Resist,  even  unto  blood,  in  the  conflict  with  your 
sins;  and  agonize  to  reach  the  appointed  place  of  your  re- 
treat. Flee,  n>  if  an  angel  spoke  to  you — as  if  the  monster 
Death  were  in  pursuit.  It  is  for  thy  life,  remember,  the  life 
of  the  soul  ! 

"Neither  tarry  thou  in  all  the  plain.*' — A  partial  escape 
from  your  sins  is  not  obedience.  You  may  break  off  many 
evil  habits,  and  yet  remain  upon  the  open  plain.  Think  not 
of  safety  any  where,  but  in  the  appointed  place  of  refuge. 
Be  not  content  to  avoid  the  harden  of  the  storm.  You  have 
gained  nothing,  till  you  have  gained  Christ.  You  will  find 
neither  rest,  nor  security,  any  where  but  in  him.  "His 
blood  cleanseth  from  all  sin."  It  will  not  suffice,  even  to  ap- 
proach the  line — to  be  almost  over.  The  almost-christian 
is  in  the  very  suburbs  of  Sodom,  and  danger  and  death  are 
around  him.  Go  ever  so  far,  you  are  in  the  kingdom  of  Sa- 
tan, till  your  whole  body,  and  soul,  and  spirit,  have  become 
united  to  Christ.  Satan's  kingdom  lies  all  along  the  plain. 
Get  thee  to  the  mount  :  there  Christ  teaches  :  there  his  dis- 
ciples dwell  safely,  and  free  from  the  fear  of  evil.  Stay  not 
in  all  thejylain.  Follow  the  direction  fully,  or  you  come 
short  of  obedience.  Thousands  have  been  slain,  just  at  the 
entering  in  of  the  gate.  They  have  taken  conviction  for 
conversion — light  for  love  ;  and  in  the  sparks  of  their  own 
kindling,  walked  on  securely,  and  at  the  hand  of  God,  laid 
down  in  sorrow.  No  part  of  Satan's  ground  is  safe  stand- 
ing. It  is  ice,  but  has  no  solidity.  It  may  bear  him,  who 
skims  swiftly  over  it  to  the  rock  :  it  will  let  him  through, 
who  pauses  and  stands  still.  Stay  not  in  all  the  plain. 
However  beautiful  its  borders,  the  plants  are  noxious — the 


264  SERMON  XIV. 

fruit  is  death.     Pluck  not  a  single  flower,  however  fair  its 
colors :  snuff  not  the   fragrance,   however    grateful   to  the 
sense — the  very  scent  is    poison.     Speed   your    flight — be 
spirited — be  violent — till  you    pass   the    boundary.     "The 
kingdom  of  heaven  suffireth  violence,  and  the  violent  take  it 
by  force."     Since  John's  ministry,  this  kingdom  has  been  so 
preached,  and  every  man  who  would  make  it   sure,  pressetk 
into  it.     Stay  not  in  all  the  plain. — This  is  your  only  oppor- 
tunity ;  and  should  the  storm  now  burst,  which  is   already 
near,  even  this  will  be  lost.     O  !  if  it  come  on  you,  as  it  has 
done  on  many,  though  you  seek  to  enter  in,    you   shall   not 
be  able.     It  will  be  time  enough  to  think  of  rest,   when    the 
mountain  is  gained.     The  time   for   action   is   limited:  "be- 
yond what  you  now  have,  none  is   at  your  command,  none 
within  your  power.     "  Behold  now  is  the  accepted  time;  be- 
hold now  is  the  day  of  salvation."     Speed  your  flight,  sin- 
ner !  The  Angel  hastens  to  his   work  of  destruction  :  you 
richly  deserve  a  share  in  its  desolating  effects. — Speed  your 
flight.     Are  you  weary  ?  O  !  it  is  time  to  be  weary,  of  try- 
ing the  patience  of  an  offended   God.     Of  what  should  you 
be  weary,  but  of  sin  ?    But  are  you  weary  ;  and  would  you 
have  rest  ?  Flee  to  Christ,  and  he  will  give  it  you  :  he  has 
promised  it,  and  you  can  be  at  no   loss  where  to   find  him. 
Behold  the  word  is  nigh  thee,  even  at  the  door  of  thy  lips — 
that  word  of  faith  which  we  preach.     Say  not,  who  shall  as- 
cend up  to  heaven,  to  bring  Christ  down  again  from  above. 
The  mount  of  refuge  is   near. — "  If  thou  wilt  confess  with 
thy  mouth,  the  Lord  Jesus ;  and  believe  in  thine  heart,  that 
God  hath  raised    him   from  the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved." 
And  with  what,  but  the  heart,  would  you  believe  ?  The   un- 
derstanding ?  The    Devils    do   this,   and   tremble ;  and  are 
Devils  still.     You  do  this,  without   even  their  emotion,  and 
are    sinners  still.     O  !  stay  not  here.     This    resting   place, 
wearies  my  God ;  it  produces  your  sleep  ;  and  if  this  sleep 


SERMON  XIV.  205 

be  not  broken,  you  shall  sleep  perpetually  and  not  wake, 
saith  the  Lord.  Stay  not  then — The  consequences  are  fear- 
ful ;  they  are  eternal.  How  terrible  to  the  thought :  to  en- 
dure, how  ineffably  dreadful  !  O  !  stay  not  a  moment,  on 
the  plain  of  impiety  :  escape  for  thy  life,  lest  thou  be  con- 
sumed. 

You  see,  in  this  illustration,  my  hearers  !  a  striking  exam- 
ple of  the  justice,  as  well  as  mercy,  of  God  to  sinners,  as  ex- 
hibited in  the  gospel  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  And  the 
Apostle  expressly  declares,  that  it  was  designed  by  God,  and 
recorded,  for  this  very  end.  "  The  wrath  of  God  is  reveal- 
ed from  heaven,  against  all  ungodliness  and  unrighteousness 
of  men  ;"  while  at  the  same  time,  a  Saviour  both  from  sin 
and  wrath,  is  provided,  in  whom  they  may  take  refuge. 
And  there  is  no  possible  relief,  as  there  is  no  apology  or  ex- 
cuse, for  such  as  fail,  for  any  cause,  to  avail  themselves  in 
time  of  this  provision.  The  messengers  of  God,  like  Angels 
of  mercy,  are  sent  to  warn  thern  of  their  danger,  and  point 
out  to  them  the  way  of  escape. — To  state  to  them,  that  after 
death  is  the  judgment ;  when,  if  they  are  found  without  the 
bounds  of  Christ's  kingdom,  "  destruction  is  inevitable." 
Every  thing,  in  this  view,  which  the  wicked  love,  and  pur- 
sue, is  seen  to  be  comparatively  worthless,  and  to  be  count- 
ed as  loss.  The  various  pretexts,  of  duty  to  our  families — 
of  taking  care  of  our  temporal  interest — of  ignorance  of  the 
way — of  difficulties  in  our  path — are  all  clearly  shown,  by 
this  example,  to  be  worthless,  and  invalid  excuses,  for  any 
man's  neglecting  to  "  seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his 
righteousness :"  since  God  has  declared  this  the  only  possi- 
ble way  of  safety,  and  the  course  absolutely  essential  to  duty. 
Like  the  path  of  the  man-slayer,  to  the  city  of  refuge,  the 
way  of  the  sinner's  salvation,  is  made  plain.  The  danger, 
and  the  refuge,  are  inscribed  in  legible  characters,  in  the 
books  of  the  law  and  the  gospel  :  so  that  he  may  run  and 


200  SERMON  XIV. 

read;  and  he  has    time   enough  to   escape  the  avenger  of 
blood,  who  is  in   pursuit  ;  and  make  sure  his  entrance  into 
the  city  of  refuge.     There   he    will    be  welcomed    and   no 
avenger  can  molest  him.     And,  in  virtue  of  the  death  of  the 
High  Priest,  he  may  be  one  day,  certainly,  and  graciously, 
restored  to  the  purchased  inheritance.     The  trial  will  be  an 
impartial,  and  fair  one,  for  all  :    but  the  single  question  will 
be,  who  availed  himself  of  the  refuge  provided,   and  who  did 
not  ?  This  question  answered,  will  determine  the  destiny  of 
every  man — of  each  member  of  every  family — of  each  inhab- 
itant of  every  city,  whether   he  dwelt  in   Sodom  or  Jerusa- 
lem— whether  he  were  the  "  son   in  law"   of  the   righteous, 
or  the   child   of  Belial.     Whoever  is  then  proved   to  have 
made  Christ  his  refuge,  and  to  have  abode  in  him — persever- 
ing in  the  fruits  of  righteousness  unto  the  end — will  be  open- 
ly acknowledged   and  acquitted  :  and   whoever,   under  the 
gospel,  has  failed  to   do  this,  whatever  his  character,  or  his 
expectations,  will  be  cast  out  as  a  dry,  withered,  and  useless 
branch,  fit  only  to  be   burned.     These  are  the  true  sayings 
of  God.     They  are   applicable  to    every  one  of  us  without 
distinction.     Their  solemn  import,  both  of  warning  and  en- 
couragement, is  intelligibly  announced  to  every  conscience  ; 
and  it  remains  to  be  seen,  who  among  us  will  hear  and  live  ; 
and  who  despise  and  perish  ! 


SERMON   XV. 


♦©©•««* 


VINDICTIVE    JUSTICE    INCOMPATIBLE    WITH    CHARITY. 

Romans,  xii.  19. 

Dearly  beloved,  avenge  not  yourselves,  but  give  place  unto  wrath  : 
for  it  is  icritten —  [rengeance  is  mine,  I  icill  repay,  saith  the 
Lord. 

IN  a  world  like  ours,  where  no  man  is  free  from  imper- 
fection, and  in  which  most  are  wholly  selfish,  there  must  be 
great  forbearance  somewhere.  Else,  every  man's  hand  will 
be  against  his  neighbour,  and  his  neighbour's  against  him. 
In  such  circumstances,  there  could  be  no  social  happiness; 
and  the  race  would  be  in  danger  of  a  speedy  extermination. 
But,  where  all  are  probably  culpable,  in  a  greater  or  less 
degree,  whose  duty  is  it  to  give  way  ?  Shall  physiccd  strength 
decide  the  question,  and  the  weaker,  in  every  case,  submit 
to  the  stronger — the  aged  and  infirm,  to  the  healthy  and  ro- 
bust ?  Such  a  rule  of  duty  would  not  only  be  grossly  in- 
equitable, but  productive  of  incessant  warfare,  to  settle  the 
question  of  superiority. 

It  becomes,  therefore,  an  obvious  duty,  to   ''follow  peace 
with  all  men" — a  duty,  the  performance  of  which  is  essen- 


208  SERMON  XV. 

tial  to  happiness.  But  perceiving;  the  rooted  depravity  of 
the  human  heart,  and  that  passion,  instead  of  reason,  governs 
the  conduct  of  men ;  the  Governor  of  the  world  found  it 
necessary  to  interpose  his  authority,  and  by  positive  statute, 
with  the  most  awful  sanction  annexed,  to  settle  for  every  in- 
dividual the  question  of  duty.  In  that  code  of  laws,  which 
was  given,  through  the  Jewish  Lawgiver,  to  mankind,  it  is 
written — "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself."  And 
to  remove  all  ground  of  complaint  on  the  part  of  the  in- 
jured, it  is  added — to  me  belonged]  vengeance  and  recom- 
pense. The  feet  of  transgressors  shall  slide  in  due  time : 
for  the  day  of  their  calamity  is  at  hand,  and  the  things  that 
shall  come  upon  them  make  haste  :  for  the  Lord  shall  judge 
his  people ;  neither  is  there  any  that  can  deliver  out  of  his 
hand.  If  I  whet  my  glittering  sword,  and  mine  hand  take 
hold  on  judgment;  I  will  render  vengeance  to  mine  ene- 
mies— I  will  make  my  arrows  drunk  with  blood,  and  my 
sword  shall  devour  flesh. 

In  our  intercourse  with  mankind,  we  hear  much  said  of 
the  importance  of  charity.  Yet  by  many  of  those  who  high- 
ly commend  it,  it  seems  little  understood  ;  and,  unfortunate- 
ly for  them,  they  who  most  rigorously  exact  it  from  others," 
are  not  the  most  ready  to  recommend  it  by  their  example. 
"  Be  ye  not  like  them  :  for  they  say  and  do  not."  Hear 
the  inspired  description  of  its  fruit. — "  Recompense  to  no 
man  evil  for  evil.  If  it  be  possible,  as  much  as  lieth  in  you, 
live  peaceably  with  all  men.  Avenge  not  yourselves,  but 
give  place  unto  wrath  ;  for  it  is  written — vengeance  is  mine, 
I  will  repay,  saith  the  Lord." 

I  shall  explain  the  text ;  evince  the  reasonableness  of  the 
duty  ;  and  apply  the  subject. 

I.  Vengeance  is  the  infliction  of  punishment,  on  those 
who  have  wronged  us  :  or,  the  will,  or  wish,  to  see  it  inflict- 
ed.   To  avenge  ourselves,  therefore,  is  to.  redress  our  wrongs 


SERMON  XV.  209 

of  person,  character,  liberty,  or  property,  by  inflicting  mer» 
ited  punishment.  But  vindictive  justice,  belongs  to  God 
alone  :  it  is  incompatible,  in  man,  with  charity  to  his  brother 
man.  On  this  sentiment  the  exhortation  before  us  is  found- 
ed ;  and  not  on  the  supposition,  that  he  who  oppresses,  slan- 
ders, reviles,  or  defrauds  us,  does  not  deserve  punishment. 
But  the  honor  of  God,  and  the  peace  of  society,  forbid  retal- 
iation. The  redress  of  injuries  by  private  violence — by  re- 
turning injury  for  injury — has  no  tendency  to  make  the  of- 
fender better,  or  to  mitigate  the  evil  we  have  actually  suffer- 
ed. There  is  not,  therefore,  a  rational  motive  to  vengeance. 
But  what  is  it,  to  "give  place  unto  wrath  ?"  Is  it  to  al- 
low the  flame,  kindled  by  the  collision  of  others'  passions 
with  ours,  to  burn  within  our  own  breasts;  provided,  it 
break  not  forth  to  another's  consumption  ?  Nothing  can  be 
more  absurd.  This  were  to  cultivate  the  corrupt  tree,  and 
only  to  pluck  oft*  the  blossoms — to  cherish  the  will  to  re- 
venge, but  to  restrain  the  act.  To  "give  place  unto  wrath," 
then,  is  a  phrase,  denoting  the  gentleness  which  yields  to 
other  men's  fury,  instead  of  exciting  resistance  to  the  pas- 
sions of  the  wicked  :  or,  which  opposes  them,  only  with  those 
soft  words,  which  "turn  away  wrath" ;  and  to  overcome  vi- 
olence, by  meekness  ;  and  hatred  with  love.  The  very 
spirit  of  the  law,  as  given  us  in  the  christian  precepts;  and 
the  words  of  the  Apostle  immediately  following  the  text, 
confirm  this  view  of  his  design.  To  bless  those  who  curse 
us  ;  to  do  good  to  those  who  hate  us ;  is  not  to  add  provo- 
cation, or  fuel,  to  the  flame.  Yet  this  is  the  mode  which  di- 
vine wisdom  has  prescribed,  to  win  the  souls  of  the  wicked — 
to  evince  the  superior  excellence  of  the  christian  temper — 
and  to  propagate  a  religion,  productive  only  of  good  will  to 
men;  and,  if  such  fruit  be  desirable,  he  only  takes  efficient 
measures  to  be  wise,  and  useful,  who  thus  gives  place  unto 
wrath. 

07 


210  SERMON  XV. 

II.     I  proceed  then,  in  the  second  place,   to  evince  the 
reasonableness  of  the  requisition ;  and  thus  to    enforce  the 
duty.       God   is   the  sole    and  rightful    sovereign   of  an- 
gels and  of  men.     It  is   his  10  govern  without   a   coun- 
sellor,   and    without   control.      Be    it    remembered,    then, 
that    God   claims  it    as  his  prerogative,   to  punish  sin. — 
He  has  proclaimed   it  as  his  pleasure,  that  the  transgressor 
shall  not  receive  his  deserts,  in  the  present  state.      The  pe- 
riod, and  place  of  retribution,  lie  beyond  the  verge  of  earth 
and  time.     It  would  defeat  the  wisest  and  best   design    of 
heaven,  to  change  the  place  of  man's  trial  and  probation,  into 
a  state  of  punishment — a   plaGe   of  unmingled  justice,    and 
judgment.     Is  it  not   perfectly  reasonable,  then,   that  man 
should  be  required  to   abstain  from   every   measure,    which 
tends  to  produce  this  change  ?     Aside  from  our  obligation, 
therefore,  to  love  our  enemies,  there  is  a  sound  reason,  and 
a  broad  foundation,  for  the  prohibition,  and  the  requisition, 
on  which  we  meditate.     The  man  who  justifies  by  his  prac- 
tice, and  vindicates  b}'  argument,  the   custom  of  retaliation, 
teaches  rebellion  against    the  King    of  nations.      He    first, 
usurps  an  authority  which  belongs  exclusively  to  God  ;  and 
next,  employs  that  usurped  authority,  to    counteract   God's 
purposes  of  mercy  to  mankind.      He   wrests   the  sword   of 
justice  from  the  hand  of  his  Sovereign,  who  alone  has  judg- 
ment to  wield  it ;  and  thrusts  it  at   the  miserable  victim  of 
his  fury,  before  the  time  of  trial  is  finished,  and  the  means  of 
reformation,  which  the  grace  of  God  has  appointed  him,  are* 
exhausted.      Such  is  the  ground  which  the  Holy  Spirit   has 
assumed;    and    it   proves,  beyond  controversy,    that    the 
system  of  retaliation — that  is,  of  rendering  evil  for  evil — 
is  a  high-handed  offence   against    the    divine   government ; 
that    it    is    absolutely   inconsistent   with   that   benevolence 
to    sinners,    which    God    himself    exercises,    and    requires 
us   to    imitate ;    and   is    opposed,    alike,    to    the   law    of 


SERMON  XV.  1 1 1 

nature,  and  to  both  tables  of  the  decalogue.  The  conduct 
of  those  who  intentionally  injure  their  fellow  men,  is  infinite- 
ly more  offensive  to  God,  than  it  can  be  to  us  ;  yet  he  has 
patience  to  bear  with  them  who  are  guilty  of  it,  and  to  give 
opportunity  for  their  conviction  and  reformation,  before  he 
punish  it.  And  does  it  become  man — himself  an  offender — 
to  hasten  the  judgment  of  God,  by  the  execution  of  justice 
on  his  fellow  man?  Is  it  too  much,  in  him  who  equally 
needs  the  compassion  and  forbearance  of  God,  to  prolong 
his  patience,  till  immaculate  Holiness  pronounce  the  sentence, 
and  direct  the  blow .?  What  an  astonishing  height,  and 
length,  and  depth,  and  breadth  of  iniquity,  is,  in  this  view 
of  the  subject,  chargeable  on  him,  who,  impatient  for  the  day 
of  vengeance,  filches  the  thunderbolt  from  beneath  the  throne, 
and  hurls  it,  unbidden,  at  a  brother  in  crime  !  'I  approach 
the  closet  of  the  disciple  of  Christ,  and  overhear,  among  his 
petitions,  the  entreaty — "Lord,  let  it  alone  this  year  also" — 
"lay  not  this  sin  to  their  charge."  I  go  into  the 
sanctuary,  and  witness,  in  the  devout  assembly,  their 
strong  crying  to  the  God  of  mere}',  for  his  enemies,  to 
give  them  "repentance  unto  life."  I  ascend  the  hill  of 
Zion,  and  see  the  angels  of  God  preparing  to  descend,  to 
minister  unto  them,  who,  through  the  prayers  of  the  devout, 
are  to  be  the  heirs  of  salvation.  I  look  on  the  right  hand  of 
the  throne,  and  behold  the  Lamb,  by  sinners  crucified  and 
slain,  interceding  there,  to  take  away  their  sins.  I  return 
to  the  familiar  scenes  of  life,  expecting  some  blessed  fruits 
from  all  these  precepts  and  patterns.  But  alas  !  (here,  at 
the  feet  of  wounded  pride,  lies  the  mangled  body  of  the  slan- 
derer ;  and  there,  the  seducer  is  answering,  with  his  life,  for 
the  wrongs  of  an  injured  sister.  Look  at  this  picture,  impla- 
cable spirit !  and  think  how  those  within  the  veil — how 
God,  the  Judge  of  all-— regards  the  feelings  of  thine  heart. 
Let  us  extend  our  view  of  the  subject.      He   who  oi?ce 


212  SERMON  XV. 

came  to  earth,  to  present  in  our  behalf,  a  sacrifice  and 
a  sin-offering  unto  God,  will  soon  come  again:  "his 
reward  with  him,  and  his  work  before  him."  That  work 
is  to  take  vengeance  on  them  who  know  not,  or  recog- 
nize not,  God  ;  and  obey  not  his  gospel :  that  recompense, 
to  punish,  with  everlasting  destruction  from  the  presence  of 
the  Lord,  and  the  glory  of  his  power.  Then,  "the  wicked 
shall  be  turned  into  hell."  Then,  exact,  and  perfect  justice, 
shall  be  measured  to  every  sin,  against  the  law  of  love  to 
God,  and  love  to  men.  Then,  that  slanderer  will  lift  up  his 
eyes,  in  despair  of  that  mercy  which  he  refused  to  seek  ;  and 
he  who  pursued  to  the  death  the  seducer*  will  be  found,  with 
him,  beyond  the  reach  of  a  forgiveness  which  his  revengeful 
soul  would  not  exercise — the  smoke  of  their  torment,  as- 
cending from  the  bottomless  pit  without  intermission  and 
without  end.  Then,  the  hopeless  eye  will  look  around, 
beneath,  above ;  and  having,  age  after  age,  wept  in  vain, 
will  discover  not  a  heart  to  pity,  not  an  arm  to  save.  The 
day  of  vengeance,  said  Jehovah,  was  in  my  heart ;  now  it  is 
come.  Now  divine  justice  and  mercy,  shine  unmixed  and 
clear,  in  all  their  awfully  glorious  splendor.  "How  long"-r- 
the  humble  asked — "how  long  shall  the  wicked  triumph;" 
utter  hard  things,  and  break  in  pieces,  and  afflict  thine  her- 
itage ?  "  How  long,  O  Lord,  holy  and  true,  dost  thou  not 
avenge  the  blood  of  thy  servants,"  which  crieth  to  thee  from 
the  ground  ?  The  answer  was  returned — "He  will  avenge 
them  speedily"  :  he  will  bring  upon  them  their  own  iniquity, 
and  cut  them  off  in  their  wickedness. — "The  Lord  is  not 
slack,  as  some  men  count  slackness ;  but  is  long  suffering." 
Now  his  word  is  verified.  His  justice  blazes  with  dreadful 
flame,  in  recompensing  tribulation  to  them  who  troubled 
you :  his  mercy  glows  with  equal  brightness,  on  the  heads  of 
his  anointed,  crowned  with  uninterrupted  rest.  Now  the 
asserted  claim  is  made  good — Vengeance  is  the  Lord's,  and 


SERMON  XV.  213 

he  alone  repays.  Now  you  see  every  wrong  which  you  re- 
ferred to  him,  redressed.  Now,  before  the  Eternal,  stand 
the  elect  avenged.  The  sins  of  their  enemies,  have  readied 
to  heaven  :  they  entered  the  ears  of  the  Lord  of  Sabaoth  ; 
they  are  remembered  forever.  Mystic  Babylon  is  reward- 
ed, as  she  rewarded  yon  :  unto  her  is  doubled  according  to 
her  works  ;  and  all  who  refused  not,  in  time,  to  partake  of 
her  sins,  partake  now  forever  of  her  plagues.  These  have 
come  in  one  day.  She  burns  with  unconsuming  fire  :  for 
strong  and  true  is  the  Lord  who  judgeth  her.  Now  the 
heavens  rejoice  over  her,  by  divine  command  ;  and  all  the 
holy  Apostles,  and  Prophets  :  for  God  hath  avenged  them 
on  her. 

From  this  rapidly  approaching  scene,  I  turn  to  the  hard- 
est heart  in  this  assembly,  and  ask,  in  the  name  of  God,  is 
not  this  enough  ?  Are  you  too  impatient,  to  wait  the  day  of 
God  for  the  award  of  righteousness  ?  Does  the  love  of  justice 
constrain  you,  to  anticipate,  in  this  life,  the  evils  coming  on 
the  ungodly  in  the  next  ?  O  !  what  a  heart  is  that,  which 
would  wish  a  single  pang  inflicted  here,  on  those  who  are  to 
drink  up  the  full  measure  of  divine  indignation  hereafter. 
Bleed,  O  compassionate  soul !  in  view  of  such  a  doom,  for 
him  who  loveth  not  his  brother.  Stay  not  to  ask,  if  he  be 
stranger,  or  acquaintance  ;  friend,  or  foe.  Would  you  have 
an  agency  in  fitting  men  for  such  a  vengeance  ?  Beware 
then,  dearly  beloved  !  that  you  "  avenge  not  yourselves  ;" 
and,  by  an  authoritative  example,  lead  others  down  to  the 
chambers  of  death.  "  Give  place,  rather,  to  wrath  ;"  that, 
seeing  the  reality  and  loveliness  of  the  christian  temper, 
others  may  count  its  attainment  worth  the  necessary  sacri- 
fice. Heap  the  fire  of  love,  upon  the  heads  of  your  ene- 
mies :  melt  their  hearts,  with  coals  from  the  altar  of  Jehovah 
Jesus ;  and  save  them,  if  possible,  from  everlasting  burn- 
ings. 


214  SERMON  XV. 

Let  Devils  and  savages,  continue  to  maintain  the  doc- 
trine, that  revenge  is  sweet :  truth  and  goodness,  shall  find 
advocates  in  the  disciples  of  the  crucified  Lamb.  They  will 
every  where  proclaim,  in  their  doctrine  and  their  lives,  that 
though  it  be  human  to  return  evil  for  evil ;  it  is  God-like,  to 
f*  overcome  evil  with  good." 

To  submit,  without  resentment,  to  injury  from  men,  is  ne- 
cessary, to  fulfil  the  law  of  love  to  men,  as  well  as  that  of 
piety  to  God.  "  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself," 
is  an  unexceptionable,  and  perfect,  rule  of  human  duty  ; 
and,  "  whatever  ye  would  that  they  should  do  to  you,  do  ye 
even  so  to  them,"  is  a  paraphrase,  the  correctness  of  which, 
none  but  the  atheist  will  dispute.  Suffer  me  then  to  ask,  if 
ever  a  man  of  sound  mind,  did  wish,  or  could  rationally  de- 
sire, the  punishment  from  his  neighbor,  which  his  injurious 
usage  of  him  has  well  deserved  ?  And  if  not,  by  what  law 
he  takes  a  liberty,  which  he  disallows  to  him  ?  You  have 
trespassed  upon  your  neighbor's  rights  ;  but  deny  his  right 
to  take  away  yours  in  turn.  You  have  punished  him  for 
defrauding  you  ;  but  you  deny  to  hirn  the  right  to  retaliate. 
You  boast  of  the  chastisement  you  have  inflicted  on  him  ^ 
does  he  rise,  in  your  estimation,  by  commendation  of  himself 
for  a  like  victory,  gained  by  him  over  conscience  and  you? 
What  blindness  and  partiality  are  here  !  What  unbiassed 
judgment,  does  not  condemn  such  an  operation  of  the  under- 
standing and  affections  ?  Does  such  a  man  deserve  well  of 
his  family,  and  of  the  public?  Does  such  obliquity  of  will 
secure  the  approbation  of  God  ?  Answer  as  he  may  to  serve 
a  purpose,  the  conscience  of  every  man,  declares  the  custom 
of  retaliation  inconsistent  with  the  law  of  love  :  for  "  love," 
says  the  pen  of  Jehovah,  "  worketh  no  ill  to  his  neighbor." 
If  the  affections  of  the  heart,  correspond  with  the  decisions 
of  the  mind,  it  will  be,  of  consequence,  the  habitual  language 
of  us  all — wickedness  proceeded!  from  the  wicked,  but  my 


SERMON  XV.  215 

hand  shall  not  be  upon  him  :  I  hate  the  work  of  them  who 
turn  aside  to  lies :  I  abhor  their  conduct,  and  the  disposition 
from  which  it  proceeds  ;  but  this  lessens  not  my  obligation, 
to  wish  that  disposition  changed  ;  and  to  employ  the  means 
of  divine  prescription — expostulation  and  prayer — for  this 
end ;  and  to  treat  them  kindly,  whether  successful  or  not ; 
and,  having  done  this,  to  leave  their  judgment  with  him  to 
whom  vengeance  belongs. 

The  whole  s}*stem  of  retaliation,  proceeds  from  a  spirit  of 
insubordination  to  God,  the  want  of  faith  in  his  perfections 
and  government,  and  a  heart,  destitute  of  every  benevolent 
desire  for  the  good  of  our  enemies.  Specious  and  plausible, 
as  may  be  the  arguments  of  some  ingenious  advocates  of 
this  system,  they  vanish  into  thin  air,  at  the  touch  of  the 
hallowed  prohibition — thou  shalt  not  do  evil  that  good  may 
come.  It  is  admitted,  that  the  welfare  of  society  requires 
the  punishment  of  some  trespasses  upon  our  rights,  for  which 
the  laws  make  no  provision.  But  shall  an  unauthorized  in- 
dividual, avenge  the  wrongs  of  a  community,  (for  his  own 
wrongs,  by  the  very  terms,  are  now  out  of  the  question)  who 
have  the  power  in  their  own  hands  ?  Who  has  required  it  at 
his  hands  ?  That  community  is  not  incapable  of  legislating 
for  itself,  which  protects  each  member.  Such  a  procedure, 
therefore,  is  an  offence  against  society.  It  is  of  the  very  na- 
ture of  rebellion  against  the  government.  It  has  its  origin, 
in  the  arrogant,  ambitious,  and  disorganizing  spirit  of 
David's  son — "  O  that  I  were  made  judge  in  the  land  ;"  that 
every  injured  citizen  might  bring  his  suit  to  me,  and  I  would 
do  him  justice.  Mistaken  zeal,  which  issues  in  disgraceful 
death ;  and  leaves  an  affectionate  father,  to  mourn  that  he 
had  not  died  in  his  behalf.  The  righteous  providence  of 
God,  in  the  calamity  inflicted  for  this  sin,  has  left  on  history, 
a  lesson  for  man,  more  impressive  than  statutes  written  in 
ink,  or  engraved   on  tables  of  stone.     It  is  indeed  true,  and 


216  SERMON  XV. 

a  deplorable  proof  of  human  weakness,  and  insufficiency, 
that  the  laws  of  civil  society,  afford  but  a  partial  protection 
to  the  virtuous ;  and  an  inadequate  defence,  against  the  law- 
less and  disobedient.  But  the  law  of  God,  not  private  in- 
terpretations of  human  reason,  is  given  us,  to  supply  the  de- 
ficiency. What  if  ye  do  well,  and  still  suffer  from  the  injus- 
tice of  man  !  even  hereunto  were  ye  called  :  for  Christ  also 
suffered,  the  just  for  the  unjust,  leaving  us  an  example  that 
we  should  follow  his  steps.  And  that  no  doubt  might  re- 
main to  us,  concerning  the  fruits  of  genuine  benevolence,  we 
are  explicitly  taught,  that  thus  to  suffer  without  resentment, 
is  acceptable  virtue  with  God.  Only  the,  most  deplorable 
blindness  in  man,  could  render  necessary,  so  many  pre- 
cepts upon  precept,  and  lines  upon  line,  to  render  intelligi- 
ble and  plain,  the  duties  arising  out  of  the  law  of  love  :  and 
it  is  only,  because  there  is  among  mankind  so  little  faith  in 
a  future  judgment,  and  its  consequences,  that  the  public  sen- 
timent is  so  grossly  corrupt  on  the  subject  of  retaliation. 
We  walk  by  sight,  and  not  by  faith  ;  or  we  are  not  joined 
with  those  conspirators  against  human  happiness,  who  toler- 
ate the  practice.  For  every  act  of  retaliation,  is  a  libel  On 
our  heavenly  lawgiver — because  it  is  a  direct  infraction  of 
the  statutes  of  his  kingdom.  Compare  the  sentiments  and 
conduct  of  the  men  of  the  world — men  of  honor — men  of 
spirit — and  their  rules  of  action  towards  offenders — with 
those  of  Jesus  Christ.  Listen  to  their  descriptions  of  hon- 
orable principles — their  manly  pride — their  genuine  brave- 
ry— their  terms  of  satisfaction  for  insult,  and  outrage — their 
exactions  of  what  is  due  to  their  character — and  then  go  to 
mount  Olivet,  for  the  contrast.  What  is  the  language  of 
the  Preacher  there  ?  "  Blessed  are  the  poor  in  spirit" — '-the 
meek" — "the  peacemakers" — the  falsely  reported  for  the  gos- 
pel's sake.  Examine  now  the  spoil  of  their  victories — the 
hlood-stained,  and  blood-bought  insignia  of  their  virtues — 


SERMON  XV.  217 

and  say  if  it  be  possible,  that  they  either  fear  God  or  regard 
man,  if  they  have  expected  to  be  judged  by  the  laws  of 
Christ,  for  their  affections  to  the  one,  or  their  treatment  of 
the  other. — Say  also,  from  whose  principles,  it  is  meanness 
and  cowardice  to  shrink — his,  who,  from  a  generous  superi- 
ority to  the  wrongs  of  his  fellow  men,  returns  good  for  evil  j 
or  his,  who,  in  contempt  of  Jehovah's  favor,  and  regardless 
of  his  brother's  welfare,  demands  eye  for  eye,  and  blood  for 
blood — reckless  of  the  wife's  subsistence,  and  the  orphan's 
tears — to  wipe  off  an  aspersion  on  his  character,  or  avenge 
an  indignity  offered  to  his  person,  or  his  dog  I*  No,  my 
brethren !  in  no  species  of  retaliation,  from  the  highest,  to 
the  lowest — from  that  which  is  accounted  honorable,  to  that 
which  is  admitted  to  be  despicable — has  the  wisdom,  or  be- 
nevolence from  above,  any  share  of  influence.  The  moment 
our  actions  partake  of  this  holy  character,  they  are  honored 
of  God,  and  virtuous  minds,  with  the  name  of  philanthropy, 
or  public  spirit ;  and  cease  either  to  deserve  the  name,  or 
possess  the  nature,  of  revenge  ;  but  are  identified  with  the 
streams  of  that  vivifying  river,  which  proceeds  from  the 
throne  of  God  Almighty,  and  the  Lamb.  Good  will  to  man, 
may  consist  with  a  desire,  that  the  wicked  should  suffer  un- 
der legitimate  authority,  the  due  reward  of  their  deeds,  when 
it  becomes  necessary  to  the  public  interest ;  but  can  never 
take  a  step,  in  concerting  measures  to  wound  them,  merely 
because  they  have  injured  us.  Genuine  benevolence  is 
without  dissimulation  :  it  is  kindly  affectioned  :  it  is  patient 
in  tribulation  :  it  rejoices  with  them  who  rejoice,  and  weeps 
with  them  who  weep  :  it  is  conciliatory  with  enemies  ;  and. 
disposed,  as  far  as  possible,  to  live  peaceably  with  all  men  : 

*  In  the  expression,  "  his  person  or  his  dog,"  the  author  may  perhaps  al- 
lude to  an  affair  of  honor,  between  Colonel  Montgomery  and  Captain 
Macnamara  ;  which  originated  in  the  fighting  of  their  dogs,  and  terminat- 
ed in  the  murder  of  Colonel  Montgomery  !  An  at  u  t  if  this  very  honor- 
able transaction  may  he  found  in  the  Christian  Observer  for  April  1803. 

28 


218  SERMON  XV. 

it  endures  personal  affronts,  and  leaves  such  as  will  not  be 
reclaimed,  to  the  judgment  of  God.  This  is  the  charity, 
which  surpasses  science,  and  prophec}7,  and  tongues — which 
shall  flourish,  while  the  great  globe  itself  dissolves ;  and 
bloom,  and  bear,  and  bless,  when  Faith  shall  have  offered 
her  last  sacrifice,  and  Hope  dropped  anchor  under  the  walls 
of  the  celestial  city. 

3.  The  reasonableness  of  the  duty  to  which  the  Apostle 
exhorts  us,  is  evinced,  in  the  last  place,  by  its  obvious  ten- 
dency to  promote  personal  tranquillity,  and  peace  of  mind. 
Men  do  not  ordinarily  avenge  themselves  in  cool  blood  ;  nor 
is  it  always  an  easy  task,  to  fix  upon  the  time,  the  place,  the 
mode  of  redress.  The  mind  in  the  mean  time,  like  the  Vol- 
canic mountain  before  it  disgorges  its  fires,  is  full  of  commo- 
tion. He  who  is  bent  on  revenge,  plots  on  his  bed  the  mea- 
sures by  which  the  slanderer  is  to  atone  for  his  offence,  by 
which  the  knave  is  to  be  made  to  suffer  for  his  dishonesty, 
and  the  ungrateful  to  be  stung  in  return  by  his  resentment. 
He  sleeps  not  till  he  has  done  the  mischief;  he  has  no  re- 
pose, till  he  has  made  his  enemy  to  fall.  But  the  very  pas- 
sions which  are  thus  engaged  in  conflict,  till  the  purpose  is_ 
fixed,  till  the  blow  is  struck,  till  the  foe  is  debased,  are  dis- 
quieting and  tormenting.  And  who  can  describe  the  remorse 
which  he  is  preparing  himself  to  suffer,  when  the  vengeance 
is  inflicted — when  reason  and  cool  reflection  resume  their 
throne,  and  the  suggestions  of  wisdom  and  prudence  take,  at 
too  late  a  period,  the  place  of  the  dictates  of  rage  ?  And 
how  often  does  the  disapprobation  of  the  judicious,  and  the 
indignation  of  partizans  which  follow,  embitter  still  more  the 
remembrance  of  the  deed,  and  add  to  his  self-inflicted 
wounds,  those  of  an  hundred  tongues  or  pens  dipped  in  gall. 
Christian  benevolence  on  the  contrary,  bears,  in  its  fruits,  its 
own  reward.  It  needs  not  the  commendations  of  the  crowd ; 
its  own  conscious  integrity  sustains  and  soothes  it..    The  tes- 


SERMON  XV.  219 

timony  of  a  conscience  void  of  offence  to  God  and  man,  is 
itself  an  Atlas — erect  under  the  pressure  of  a  world.  "The 
spirit  of  a  man  may  sustain  his  infirmity,  but  a  wounded 
spirit  who  can  bear."  Innocence  has  a  refuge  at  hand,  from 
the  abuse  of  others  ;  but  the  recollection  of  injuries  inflicted, 
is,  to  an  ingenuous  mind,  intolerable.  Having  his  conscience 
awakened,  to  execute  the  duties  of  his  office,  he  has  only 
added  to  the  reproach  of  which  he  sought  to  disburthen 
himself;  and,  in  repairing  his  imaginary  honor,  he  has  un- 
dermined the  very  foundation  on  which  humanity  is  built : 
for  it  is  the  glory  of  man  to  pass  by  a  transgression. 

Is  he  a  christian,  who  has  thus,  by  conformity  to  the 
world,  fallen  from  his  high  estate  ?  How  serious  is  his 
loss — how  aggravated  his  wo  !  He  has  betrayed  his  trust ; 
and  in  his  attempt  to  approach  the  throne  of  grace,  meets  a 
repulse,  like  that  of  the  Sanhedrim's  band,  who,  at  the  very 
sight  of  the  Saviour's  face,  "went  backward  and  fell  to  the 
ground."  The  word  of  him  who  is  thus  sought  by  prayer, 
is  like  a  thunderbolt — "whom  seek  ye  ?" — Do  ye  seek  the 
God  of  mercy — ye  who  have  showed  no  mercy  ?  He  has  no 
rest  in  his  bones,  because  of  his  sin.  He  has  grieved  the 
spirit  of  love  ;  and  repentance  must  precede  the  light  of  that 
countenance  which  only  gives  health,  and  which  never 
smiled  upon  transgression.  Does  he  lisp  before  God,  the 
desire  to  be  forgiven,  as  he  forgives  ?  His  conscience  be- 
trays the  lie  as  soon  as  it  is  uttered.  While  thus  mocking 
liis  maker,  darkness  and  perplexity  cover  his  path ;  and  his 
heart,  torn  and  divided  with  opposing  claims,  can  meet 
neither  a  forgiving  God,  nor  an  injured  brother,  without  the 
blush  of  shame.  O!  how  much  better  to  be  of  a  humble 
spirit  with  the  lowly,  than  to  divide  the  spoil  with  the  proud  ! 
Look  a  moment  at  his  course,  and  see  its  end.  "This  poor 
man  cried,  and  the  Lord  heard,  and  delivered  him  out  of  all 
his  troubles."     He  has  chosen  rather  to  suffer  for  well-doing, 


220  SERMON  XV. 

than  offend  God.  He  has  bren  injured  much,  and  threat- 
ened nothing.  He  has  been  reviled,  but  reviled  not  again. 
The  archers  have  shot  at  him,  but  his  bow  abode  in  its 
strength,  and  his  hand  remained  strong  :  he  committed  him- 
self, and  them,  to  God  who  judgeth  righteously.  He  is  a 
man  of  like  passions  with  others  ;  he  has  felt,  like  other  men, 
a  conflict  between  corruption  and  his  better  part ;  his  spirit 
was  stirred  within  him,  and  the  fire  burned.  But  he  felt 
himself  a  debtor  to  grace  :  he  perceived  at  a  glance  the  ex- 
cellence of  the  law  of  his  God  :  he  saw  and  admired,  its  per- 
fect exemplification  in  his  Redeemer.  At  such  a  moment, 
his  soul  burns  to  be  like  him,  to  honor  him,  to  live  and  act 
to  the  same  end,  for  which  he  stooped  and  died.  His  heart 
is  melted  for  his  enemy ;  his  soul  catches  the  inspiration 
breathing  from  the  cross  ;  he  goes  to  the  altar  of  God  with 
exceeding  joy,  and  "without  partiality  and  without  hypoc- 
risy," cries,  "Father  forgive."  He  has  triumphed  over 
corruption  :  the  sun  has  not  gone  down  upon  his  wrath  :  he 
lies  down  to  rest  in  sweet  serenit}',  and  with  gratitude  to 
God  who  has  given  him  the  victory ;  and  whether  he  awake 
in  this  world  or  another,  with  such  a  temper  he  awakes  in 
Christ's  likeness,  and  is  satisfied.  What  though  he  be  a 
poor,  unnoticed,  unbefriended  pilgrim,  and  a  stranger  in  the 
world  !  What  though  he  has  no  shields,  or  swords,  or  scars 
— no  trophies  of  the  victors  of  this  world  !  He  has  the  fa- 
vorable notice  of  "  the  high  and  lofty  One  who  inhabiteth 
eternity;"  and  in  this,  a  source  of  gratification  greater  than 
the  mighty,  and  in  the  subjection  of  his  spirit  to  him,  a 
glory  richer  fraught  with  inward  and  permanent  satisfaction, 
than  his  who  takeih  a  city.  He  has  achieved  a  conquest 
over  his  sinful  propensities  ;  he  has  advanced  a  little  in  the 
honors  and  the  field  of  christian  warfare  ;  and,  though  there 
may  remain  "  very  much  land  to  be  possessed,"  by  patient 
continuance  in  well-doing,  he  shall  come  off  more  than  con- 


SERMON  XV.  821 

queror  at  last,  and,  through  him  who  lias  loved  him,  sit  down 
on  the  throne  of  perfect  self-government,  and  of  his  peace 
there  shall  be  no  end.  Dearly  beloved,  avenge  not  your- 
selves ;  but  rather,  for  the  joy  set  before  you,  give  place  unto 
wrath  ;  for  it  is  written,  Vengeance  and  recompense  are  the 
Lord's.  Judge  now  of  yourselves,  if  to  exercise  a  temper 
and  practice  productive  of  a  good  so  vast,  so  extensive,  so 
endless,  so  uncorrupt,  be  not  indeed  j^our  reasonable  ser- 
vice.* 

III.  The  application  of  the  subject  is  necessary,  in  the 
last  place,  both  to  fulfil  the  promise  made  at  the  beginning, 
and  to  correct  false  views  of  the  character  of  mankind. 

If  the  ground  taken  in  this  discourse  be  correct,  it  cannot 
but  be  obvious  that  Christianity,  in  principle  and  in  spirit,  has 
as  yet  made  but  little  progress  in  the  world ;  and  that  the 
true  church  of  Christ  is  a  very  "little  flock."  The  spirit  of 
resentment  pervades  all  the  various  classes  and  ranks  of 
men,  in  our  own,  and  every  other  nation.  We  are  not,  in- 
deed, infallibly  taught  the  actual  state  and  habitual  temper 
of  man,  by  a  single  act  of  any  kind  ;  but  deliberate,  avowed 
retaliation,  systematically  planned,  and  perseveringly  pur- 
sued, warrants  us  in  pronouncing  its  authors,  the  children  of 
hell. 

It  becomes  us,  therefore,  with  the  utmost  impartiality  and 
seriousness,  to  enquire,  of  what  manner  of  spirit  we  ourselves 
are.  We  have  seen  that  what  "  is  highly  esteemed  among 
men,  is  abomination  in  the  sight  of  God."       We   have  seen 

*  In  the  preceding  discourse  I  have  taken  it  for  granted  throughout, 
that  all  men  against  whom  the  vindictive  spirit,  or  the  hand  of  retaliation 
is  raised,  are  deserving  of  all  the  injury  which  the  avenger  seeks  to  inflict. 
But  in  a  great  proportion  of  cases  probably,  they  are  not  intentionally 
guilty  at  all  ;  and  in  still  more,  perhaps,  their  crime  is  too  deeply  colored 
by  the  pride  of  self-consequence,  and  an  exasperated  mind.  How  much 
more  irrational  then,  the  meditated  or  inflicted  punishment  ?  How  baseless 
the  fabric,  on  which  the  avenger  seeks  to  rear  his  justification,  even  on 
worldly  principles  ?  And  if  on  these  he  cannot  be  defended,  on  those  of 
Christianity  how  aggravated  before  God  must  his  iniquity  appear  I 


222  SERMON  XV. 

that  the  nobility  of  heaven,  differs  essentially  from  that  which 
monopolizes  the  claim,  and  engrosses  the  honor  in  this 
world.  We  behold  the  one,  sought,  envied,  courted,  at  the 
sacrifice  of  "  that  honor  which  cometh  from  God."  The 
other,  despised  and  rejected,  except  by  here  and  there  a 
Moses,  refusing  to  be  called  the  Prince's  heir,  and  prefer- 
ring the  reproach  of  Christ  to  the  bubble  reputation.  The 
one,  is  arrayed  in  silken  or  golden  decorations,  covered  with 
a  drapery  after  the  fashion  of  this  world  which  passeth 
away  ;  the  other,  is  beautiful  and  lovely,  only  to  the  eye  of 
faith  ;  and  lives  only  on  things  invisible,  but  lives  forever. 

Beloved  hearer  !  is  your  heart,  as  well  as  judgment,  on 
the  side  of  God,  or  of  the  world  ?  Do  you  burn  with  the.  fires 
of  revenge,  or  with  the  fire  of  love  ?  Do  you  secretly  con- 
trive, or  even  wish,  to  retaliate  every  injury  ;  to  see  your 
oppressor,  or  the  assassin  of  your  reputation,  fall  ?  Or  does 
your  closet  witness,  does  your  conscience  testify,  does  your 
Law-giver  and  Judge,  perceive  in  your  bosoms,  the  love  to 
your  friend  which  seeks  his  repentance ;  the  good  will  to 
your  enemy  which  forgives  his  trespasses,  and  leaves  his 
name  and  person  inviolate,  and  his  judgment  and  recompense 
with  his  God  ? 

Does  ingratitude  provoke  your  resentment,  or  your  pity? 
Does  the  recollection  of  the  injuries  you  have  suffered  from 
men,  excite  the  vindictive  wish  that  they  may  be  punished, 
or  the  holy  desire  that  they  may  be  reformed  ?  Are 
there  recorded  against  your  names,  in  the  registry  of 
heaven,  any  deeds  of  kindness  towards  the  adversaries  of 
your  enjoyment,  who  have  sought  to  filch  from'  you  the 
earnings  of  uprightness  ?  Among  the  tears  of  christian  re- 
gret, which  have  been  shed  over  hard-hearted  and  cruel 
Jerusalem — tears  which  angels  gather  up  and  preserve,  and 
which  God  himself  accounts  too  precious  to  be  lost — is  there 
one,  which  can  identify  you  as  a  member  of  his  body  who 


SERMON  XV.  223 

wept  over  that  devoted  city  ?  God  knoweth.  The  secrets  of 
our  hearts  are  with  him,  and  lie  will  judge  us,  according  to 
our  works.  The  day  of  his  redeemed  makes  haste,  the 
hour  of  separation' approaches ;  and  who — who  among  us — 
for  the  momentary,  the  paltry  gratifications  of  a  malicious 
heart,  will  forego  the  transports  of  the  man,  who,  in  that 
hour,  shall  find  himself  on  Christ's  right  hand  !  For,  as  God 
is  true,  he  shall  never  taste  that  joy,  who  haleth  his  brother 
in  his  heart. 

Will  you  reason  with  me,  implacable  man  !  and  tell  me 
you  have  sought  shelter  in  that  faith  by  which  the  ungodly 
are  justified  ?  But  you  show  me  your  faith,  without  the 
works  which  faith  produces — "The  Devils  also  believe  and 
tremble."  Your  faith  is  dead  at  the  root.  Do  you  insist 
upon  a  free  salvation  ?  God  forbid  a  sinner  should  look  for 
any  other  :  but  remember  you  are  saved,  neither  freely,  nor 
at  all,  unless  you  are  saved  from  sin.  "If  any  man  have  not 
the  spirit  of  Christ,"  he  is  not  owned  of  Christ ;  and  his  was 
not  a  spirit,  which  prompted  him  either  to  disobedience  to 
God,  or  cruel  suspicion  and  retaliation  towards  men. 

Brethren  !  the  springs  of  human  action  lie  deep.  In 
searching  for  them,  stop  not  at  throwing  off  the  surface.  Dig 
deep,  or  they  will  escape  your  observation  :  analyze  them 
carefully  when  found.  There  is  a  healing  quality,  in  those 
waters  which  flow  from  the  life-giving  spirit  of  Jesus  Christ. 
The  waters  which  he  gives  are  a  living  spring ;  they  are 
running  waters ;  they  fructify  the  moral  fields  through  which 
they  flow  ;  they  issue  in  eternal  life.  Mistake  not  their  na- 
ture :  such  mistake  in  this  life,  will  prove  'fatal  in  that  which 
is  to  come.  Destitute  of  the  essential  property  to  which  we 
have  adverted,  it  will  be  too  late  to  seek  to  supply  it  when 
arrived  there.  It  may  now  be  had  :  its  infusion  will  render 
the  very  waters  of  Mara  sweet.  Do  you  thirst  for  it  ?  I 
hear  the  well  known  voice  of  Saul's  deliverer  reply — In  the 


224  SERMON  XV. 

midst  of  men,  breathing  out  threatening  and  slaughter 
against  even  the  righteous,  it  responds — "  If  any  man  thirst, 
let  him  come  unto  me,  and  drink."  It  is  the  voice,  mali- 
cious man  !  of  Jesus,  whom  thou  persecutest  :  for  inasmuch 
as  ye  do  it  to  the  least  of  his  disciples,  ye  do  it  unto  him. 
O  !  for  an  effect  on  every  heart,  like  that  produced  on  the 
carnal  zealot  of  Tarsus  !  Let  it  arrest  every  implacable 
spirit,  and  produce  anew,  the  humble  enquiry,  "  Lord,  what 
would'st  thou  have  me  to  do  ?-" 


SERMON   XVI. 


-**9%***~ 


THE    GUILT    AND    DANGER    OF    SCANDALIZING    SOULS. 

Luke,  xvii.  1.  2. 

Then  said  he  unto  the  disciples,  it  is  impossible  but  that  offences 
will  come  :  but  wo  unto  him  by  whom  they  come  !  It  were  better 
for  him  that  a  mill-stone  were  hanged  about  his  neck,  and  he 
cast  into  the  sea,  than  that  he  should  offend  one  of  these  little 
ones. 

W  HEN  Jesus  Christ  forewarned  his  disciples  of  his  cruel 
sufferings  and  disgraceful  death,  Peter,  under  the  influence 
of  an  incautious  zeal,  and  disappointed  tenderness,  said 
"  this  shall  not  be  unto  thee" — tempting  the  Saviour  to  shun 
that  cross,  which  is  the  power  and  wisdom  of  God  unto  sal- 
vation. And  this,  hearer  !  is  the  sin,  against  which  you  are 
so  pathetically,  and  terribly  admonished  in  the  text.  And 
though  there  are  three  classes  of  men  on  whom  this  wo  pre- 
eminently rests,  we  shall  not  venture  to  restrict  its  applica- 
tion to  the  persecutors  of  christians,  and  the  scandalous  and 
hypocritical  professor.  It  belongs  to  every  man,  who, 
29 


226  SERMON  XVI. 

through  defect  of  principle,  renders  the  cross  of  Christ  a 
stumbling  block  and  an  offence,  to  those  for  whom  he  died. 
To  the  aggravated  character  of  this  sin,  our  Lord  has  not 
failed  to  give  his  testimony,  by  shewing  that  it  is  diabolical 
in  its  nature,  and  therefore,  like  the  punishment  of  it  in 
Devils,  dreadful  in  its  consequences.  No  sooner  did  he 
perceive  the  nature  of  Peter's  advice,  as  opposing  the  plan 
of  God  for  our  salvation,  than  his  indignation  burst  forth 
upon  the  presumptuous  adviser,  in  the  most  tremendous  re- 
proof which  ever  fell  upon  him  from  those  benignant  lips. 
"  Get  thee  behind  me,  Satan;  thou  art  an  offence  to  me; 
for  thou  savourest  not  the  things  which  be  of  God."  He  is 
indeed  the  adversary  of  God  and  man,  who,  by  the  tendency 
of  his  counsel  or  example,  persuades  his  neighbor  to  spare 
himself  a  cross  for  Christ's  sake  and  the  gospel's.  His  sug- 
gestions imply,  not  only  a  criminal  defect  of  principle,  but 
an  unholy  origin.  They  strike  at  the  very  foundation  of  re- 
ligion, and  therefore  involve  the  deepest  criminality.  You 
perceive  then,  that  what  in  the  text  is  called  an  offence,  is 
not  merely  a  trespass — :a  wound  given  to  a  man's  sensibility 
or  honor — but  a  stab  to  his  religion.  It  is  the  becoming  a 
snare  to  his  soul — a  doing  somewhat  to  lead  him  to  avoid 
the  cross,  to  depart  from  righteousness,  to  deny  Christ.  It 
is  a  scandalizing  the  disciple  to  his  fall — a  betraying  him 
into  some  error  doctrinal,  experimental,  or  practical,  of 
ruinous  tendency.  In  the  words  of  an  Apostle,  it  is  any  thing 
by  which  thy  brother  is  stumbled  or  made  weak.  And  you 
will  observe  that  this  a  sin,  in  which  a  man  may  become  a 
partaker,  by  heedlessness  and  ignorance,  as  well  as  by  pre- 
meditation and  contempt  of  religion.  For  the  statutes  of 
God  bind  us  to  edify,  and  promote  the  salvation  of  our  neigh- 
bour :  whereas,  by  unholy  counsel,  and  a  wicked  exam- 
ple, we  become  the  occasion  of  his  vices  and  his  perdition 


SERMON  XVI.  227 

Pursuing  the  order  of  the  text,  I   shall  show  you,  first, 
that  there  is  a  necessity  for  this,  and  whence  it  comes  : 

Secondly,  that  it  is  a  great  sin,  and  deserves  reprobation  : 

Thirdly,  that  it  is  a  common  sin,  and  that  our  danger  from 
this  source  requires  great  circumspection. 

I.  First  then,  the  necessity  of  scandal,  and  whence  it 
arises  :  for  said  he  who  knew,  "  it  must  needs  be  that  scan- 
dals come" — it  is  impossible  but  that  they  should  come. 
The  necessity  of  sinning,  is  a  moral  necessity  only  ;  and  the 
offence  caused,  is  likewise  of  a  moral  nature.  It  arises,  of 
consequence,  from  the  contrariety  of  our  inclination  to  holi- 
ness ;  from  the  alienation  of  the  heart  from  God  ;  and  the 
opposition  of  man's  wishes  to  the  law  of  benevolence.  If  I 
thrust  my  hand  into  a  flame  to  disable  me  from  labor,  it  is  v 
as  necessarily  burned,  as  if  it  had  been  done  by  force.  The 
action  is  voluntary,  and  therefore  criminal  :  the  physical 
arises  from  the  moral  necessity.  It  is  as  unavoidable  that 
an  enemy  of  God  should  hate  the  gospel,  as  that  a  nauseated 
stomach  should  loathe  and  reject  wholesome  food.  The 
carnal  mind  is  prejudiced  against  the  truth  :  this  is  its  con- 
demnation :  it  is  the  grand  reason  why  it  prefers  darkness  to 
light.  It  is  also,  undiscerning  of  moral  fitness ;  and  for  this, 
the  cross  is  either  a  stumbling  block  or  foolishness.  But 
what  we  dislike  and  oppose  ourselves,  we  naturally  desire 
others  to  dislike  also.  Our  ignorance  and  prejudice,  if  they 
operate  be}'ond  our  own  bosoms,  must  operate  to  scandalize 
our  fellow  men.  Acting  with  consistency,  our  self-love  leads 
us  to  do  for  others,  so  far  as  they  make  part  of  ourselves, 
whatever  it  has  done  for  us.  If  our  sin,  therefore,  necessa- 
rily lead  us  to  blind  our  own  minds,  and  harden  our  own 
hearts,  it  must  lead  to  the  same  effect,  on  all  whose  opin- 
ions and  conduct  are  controlled  by  our  counsel  and  example. 
Just  as  necessarily  then  as  sin  does  mischief  to  our  own  souls, 
it  tends  to  make  havoc  of  other  men's;  and  if  any  sinful  ac- 


228  SERMON  XVI. 

tion  of  ours  make  our  brother  to  offend,  then  is  it  necessary 
(we  continuing  to  sin)  that  he  should  be  scandalized  ;  or  that 
an  occasion  of  his  sinning  be  found  in  us.  Considering 
then,  the  natural  opposition  of  the  heart  to  the  peculiarities 
of  the  christian  religion,  it  is  impossible  but  that  offences 
should  come.  God,  we  are  aware,  has  a  rein  upon  the  pro- 
pensities of  the  evil  heart,  and  restrains  them  in  a  degree, 
that  the  world  should  be  preserved  from  entire  desolation  ; 
that  the  church  should  not  be  disbanded  ;  that  the  human 
race  should  not  become  extinct.  But  it  is  not  his  pleasure 
to  restrain  human  device  and  purpose  in  such  degree,  as  to 
prevent  an  exhibition  of  our  affections,  or  of  the  tendency  of 
our  volitions  :  and  until  this  be  done,  the  world  will  una- 
voidably allure  and  entice  those  around  them  to  sin.  They 
must,  of  necessity,  take  part  with  Christ,  or  against  him; 
and  offer  tribute  to  his  kingdom,  or  scandalize  its  members 
to  his  dishonor.  Occasions  of  stumbling,  then,  must  ever 
exist,  until  all  the  people  of  the  world  become  righteous, 
and  the  blessedness  of  them  who  are  not  offended  in  him,  be 
strictly  universal. 

The  same  necessity  that  laid  upon  Cain  to  slay  his  broth- 
er ;  upon  the  Jews  to  crucify  the  Son  of  God ;  upon  the 
Roman  Emperors,  and  all  persecutors,  to  promote  christian 
martyrdom,  now  exists  for  the  scandal  of  the  cross,  and  ren- 
ders certain  and  inevitable  the  offences  predicted  ;  and  equal- 
ly necessary,  does  the  love  of  God  to  his  people  and  to  jus- 
tice, render  the  execution  of  the  threatened  wo.  It  is  of  this 
moral  necessity  the  Saviour  speaks,  when  he  says,  "the 
world  will  love  its  own  ;"  and  "no  man  can  serve  two  mas- 
ters," but  "will  hold  to  the  one  and  despise  the  other." 
Whoever  hates  Christianity,  must  hate  christian  influence, 
and  counteract  its  effects  on  himself  and  others,  in  all  the  ex- 
tent in  which  it  is  odious  to  him.  Saul  while  an  unbeliever, 
sought  to  overthrow  the  faith,  and  as  necessarily  to  establish 


SERMON  XVI.  229 

it  after  his  conversion.  Men  of  corrupt  minds  withstood 
Moses,  became  seducers,  and  laid  snares  for  Israel's  ruin. 
The  sorcerer,  in  like  manner,  laboured  to  turn  away  the 
Proconsul  from  the  faith,  by  perverting  the  word  of  God. 
Scandals  then  are  necessary,  just  so  far  as  a  wicked  man 
acts  without  restraint  in  the  feelings  and  wishes  of  his  heart ; 
and  this  constrained  the  Apostle  to  express  a  fear  to  one  of 
the  churches,  that  as  the  serpent  beguiled  Eve,  false  teach- 
ers should  beguile  its  members  of  their  christian  simplicity. 
Is  any  man's  ear  turned  from  the  truth  unto  fables — his  ex- 
ample becomes  a  snare  to  those  who  witness  it.  Were  there 
within  the  bounds  of  the  church,  unruly  and  vain  talkers — 
they  necessarily  withstood  the  wholesome  words  of  the 
Apostle  ;  and  if  the  one  established,  the  others  subverted  the 
truth.  As  among  the  ancients,  said  Peter,  there  were  false 
prophets,  so  shall  there  be  among  you — teachers  denying 
the  Lord  who  bought  them,  bringing  in  damnable  heresies, 
and  on  themselves  destruction  ;  and  many  shall  follow  their 
evil  ways,  by  reason  of  whom  the  way  of  truth  shall  be  vili- 
fied. The  nature  of  this  necessity  then  must  be  obvious  ; 
since  (as  the  preceding  examples  shew)  from  that  constitu- 
tion of  God  by  which  every  seed  produces  its  own  kind,  ev- 
ery fountain  sends  forth  streams  of  the  self-same  quality.  It 
is  not  the  necessity  of  the  fatalist — implying  involuntary  ef- 
fects from  involuntary  causes — but  the  impossibility  of  a 
free  agent's  willing  contradictions  ;  and  extends  alike  to  the 
creature  and  to  God. 

II.  Having  shown  the  nature  of  scandal,  and  whence  it 
comes,  I  am  to  evince,  in  the  second  place,  how  great  is  the 
sin,  and  how  dreadful  its  deserts.  He  who  takes  away  my 
life,  only  puts  an  end  to  my  doing  this  generation  good  or 
harm  ;  but  he  who  corrupts  my  religious  principles,  poisons 
the  morals  of  the  generation,  and  makes  me  a  murderer  of 
souls.     Nor  does  it   affect  the  reality  of  this  truth,  that  this 


230  SERMON  XVI. 

sin  has  many  shapes.  We  may  prejudice  the  soul  against 
the  gospel  and  its  author  as  we  will,  but  whether  it  be  by 
raillery  or  terror,  wit  or  sophistry,  by  inculcating  falsehood 
or  concealing  essential  truths,  by  persecution  or  flattery,  by 
counsel  or  example,  by  teaching  corrupt  doctrines,  or  draw- 
ing pernicious  inferences  from  premises  which  are  true,  the 
effect  is  the  same — a  soul  is  murdered — and  if  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  life  of  the  body  deserves  indignation,  and  proves 
the  murderer  destitute  of  religious  life,  what  can  be  a  retri- 
bution for  him  who  betrays  a  soul  to  death — who,  by  poison- 
ing the  principles  of  his  holiness  of  life,  procures  his  immor- 
tal loss  !  Only  the  eternal  God  can  save  a  soul,  but  any  fool 
can  destroy  one  ;  and  especially,  if  he  have  a  fool  for  his 
disciple.  And  who  that  loves  iniquity,  deserves  a  better 
name,  or  possesses  a  worthier  character  ?  If  the  beginning 
of  wisdom  is  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  irreverence  for  religion  is 
the  exaltation  of  folly.  But  worthless  as  he  is,  and  insignifi- 
cant as  he  may  be,  and  inefficacious  as  shall  be  his  attempts 
at  mischief,  yet  God  accounts  him  a  murderer,  and  one  too 
of  no  ordinary  kind,  inasmuch  as  the  blood  of  his  fellow 
sinner  first,  and  next  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  shall  be  required 
at  his  hand.  Wo  to  that  man  then,  by  whom  the  scandal 
cometh.  Better  far,  never  to  have  been,  better  an  untimely 
birth,  or  an  untimely  and  violent  death. 

First,  the  blood  of  his  brother's  soul,  in  the  way  of  whose 
salvation  he  laid  the  stumbling  block,  shall  be  required  of 
him.  For  be  the  consequences  what  they  may,  God  judges 
of  actions  by  their  nature  and  tendency,  and  these  are  such 
in  the  case  before  us,  as  are  eminently  calculated  to  destroy 
the  soul,  by  diverting  it  from  the  pathway  of  life  :  and  if 
this  effect  do  not  follow,  the  thanks  are  due,  not  to  him  who 
tempts  his  neighbor,  nor  to  the  neighbor  who  is  tempted, 
but  to  God,  whose  interposition  alone  prevented  the  calamity. 
I  know  it  will  be  said  that  sin  and  guilt  are  personal  things, 


SERMON  XVI.  231 

and  that  no  man  can  answer  for  another's  iniquity.  I  admit 
it,  and  yet  one  man  may  be  the  criminal  occasion  of  another's 
ruin.  If  not,  why  at  the  hand  of  the  false  Prophet,  should 
God  require  the  blood  of  the  unwarned  ?  Think  then  of  the 
enormity  of  the  crime  we  contemplate — How  literally  dia- 
bolical, how  easily  committed,  how  serious  its  consequences  ! 
Think  of  the  insinuating  child  who  seduces  his  parents,  the 
parent  who  leads  his  children,  the  husband  who  inclines 
his  wife,  and  the  individual  who  influences  his  friend,  to 
venture  on  the  fruit  forbidden  of  God. — How  malignant 
that  heart,  how  grievous  and  interminable  the  fruit  of  that 
malignity  !  How  poor  the  wretched  deceiver,  how  pitiable 
the  deluded  sufferer !  The  former  leads  an  immortal  spirit 
into  sin,  and  sin  leads  down  its  victim  to  the  chambers  of 
death.  O  !  to  be  the  death  of  a  soul  destined  to  exist  for- 
ever— how  revolting  to  humanity,  as  well  as  religion,  the 
thought!  Measure  the  duration  of  that  soul.  You  have  no 
measure  for  eternity  !  Weigh  the  value  of  that  soul's  sal- 
vation.— But  what  standard  weight  have  you  for  the  trial, 
when  Christ,  and  heaven,  and  all  that  God  has  done  for  it, 
are  in  the  opposite  scale  ?  When  you  shall  have  compre- 
hended the  preciousness  of  Christ  and  heavenly  joys,  you 
will  have  found  the  counterpoise,  But  observe,  what  I  have 
said  of  one  soul,  is  applicable  to  every  other,  of  whatever 
place,  name,  station  or  family.  It  is  infinite  good  you  take 
away,  or  infinite  evil  you  procure  for  him.  Mark  the  inti- 
mation of  his  Saviour — "  one  of  those  little  ones."  You 
have  not  caused  a  Newton,  or  a  Horsely  to  fall ;  you  have 
not  access  to  the  dwellings  of  the  great,  or  influence  over 
the  mighty  and  the  noble  ',  you  are  too  insignificant,  per- 
haps, to  persuade  them  to  be  of  your  opinion,  or  to  follow 
your  example.  But  over  the  members  of  your  own  associ- 
tion,  the  young,  or  some  stranger  who  is  ignorantly  led  by 
the  first  man  he  meets,  and  who  is  glad  to  find  a  friend  un- 


232  SERMON  XVI. 

der  any  disguise — over  those,  you  have  some  influence  to 
their  undoing.  And  it  is  a  fearful  thought,  that  it  is  a  soul 
for  whom  Christ  died,  that  you  corrupt  by  your  false  max- 
ims, or  blasphemous,  or  irreligious  life  ;  and  therefore  your 
sin  is  nothing  the  less,  because  it  is  not  a  princely  family 
you  make  to  weep  over  his  bier.  No  matter  how  little  you 
are,  in  the  sight  of  men  or  God,  provided  you  have  mis- 
chievous consequence  enough  to  beguile  one  unstable  soul, 
and  teach  him  to  avoid  or  contemn  the  cross  of  Christ :  for 
this  is  the  grand  instrument  of  perdition  or  salvation  to  us 
all.  Be  you,  or  he  who  is  duped  by  you,  never  so  mean, 
and  vile,  and  worthless,  God  has  a  claim  on  you  both,  of  in- 
describable magnitude  ;  and  both  are  capable  of  answering 
that  claim,  and  of  perishing  for  refusing  practically  to  ac- 
knowledge it.  Both  are  his  offspring  ;  for  both  a  plenteous 
redemption  price  has  been  offered ;  and  what  is  not  precious 
in  his  sight,  which  has  been  so  valued  of  him,  whom  you  ac- 
count still  meaner  than  yourself?  Take  your  judgment  of 
its  spirit's  worth  from  the  character  of  its  offered  Saviour, 
and  say  if  it  were  hot  better  to  have  been  drowned  in  the 
depth  of  the  sea,  than  to  have  filched  it  from  his  crown.   ' 

I  said  it  was  a  diabolical  sin. — And  who  did  Jesus  Christ 
declare  to  have  been  such  a  murderer  from  the  beginning? 
Who  entered  Paradise  for  no  other  purpose  than  to  deceive 
the  woman  ?  Who  has  ever  since  been  alluring  ambitious 
men,  by  the  prospect  of  being  as  Gods,  to  deny  God;  and 
thrown  in  the  way  of  thejr  conversion  the  most  insuperable' 
obstacles,  by  withdrawing  their  minds  from  the  most  painful 
but  necessary  truths  ?  And  what  individual  whose  charac- 
ter Christ  has  traced  in  the  text,  does  not  the  same  thing? 
Does  not  every  such  man  minister  to  his  neighbour's  vanity, 
pamper  his  lusts,  add  fuel  to  his  passions,  impose  on  his  cre- 
dulity, soothe  his  guilty  conscience,  and  by  practising  upon 
his  imagination  and  his  senses,  lead  him' into  the  haunts  and 


SERMON  XVI.  233 

the  strong  holds  of  vice,  under  the  name  of  a  friend  to  inno- 
cent pastime,  and  rational  gratification  ?  But  whatever  di- 
verts the  mind  from  knowledge,  truth  and  duty,  obstructs 
man's  salvation  ;  and  in  thus  diverting  the  mind,  under  the 
pretext  of  promoting  its  happiness,  you  use  the  same  decep- 
tion with  the  murderer  of  Eden,  and  by  lies  make  him  to 
transgress,  who,  by  means  of  the  truth,  might  have  escaped 
the  snare  :  and  such  truth  the  law  of  love  bound  you  to  ren- 
der familiar,  and  as  far  as  possible,  attractive  and  pleasant  to 
his  soul.  Now  if  he  who  winneth  souls  is  wise,  what  is  the 
converse  ?  And  if  he  who  converts  a  sinner  from  the  error 
of  his  ways,  saves  from  death,  is  not  that  man  lost  to  every 
thing  of  the  nature  of  charity,  who  not  only  withdraws  from 
such  a  sinner  the  best  means  of  salvation,  but  allures  him  to 
the  very  dungeon  of  sin  ?  He  who  thus  hateth  .his  brother 
is  a  murderer  ;  and  the  charity  which  rejoices  in  his  success, 
is  the  charity  of  a  murderer.  What  then  is  the  aggravation 
of  this  sin  .?  It  neglects  the  first  effort  of  love,  and  going 
over  to  the  opposite  ranks,  with  diabolical  malignity,  per- 
suades a  man  to  turn  out  of  the  narrow  way  into  the  ranks 
of  death.  Is  there  "joy  in  heaven  over  one  sinner  that  re- 
penteth,"  and  no  indignation  on  earth  in  view  of  an  agency 
which  suffers  not  itself  to  go  in,  and  hinders  them  who  would 
enter  ?  Shall  he  who  turns  many  to  righteousness,  shine 
(for  this  honored  instrumentality)  as  the  stars  of  yonder  fir- 
mament forever — and  is  not  the  blackness  of  darkness  re- 
served for  him,  who  would  turn  even  the  upright  from  his 
righteousness  ? 

But  we  shall  not  arrive  at  just  views  of  the  enormity  of 
this  sin,  till  we  consider,  that  he  who  commits  it,  is  virtually 
the  betrayer  and  crucifier  of  Christ,  as  well  as  of  his  fellow- 
sinner.  Why  is  the  Jew  to  this  day,  held  to  have  pierced 
the  Son  of  God,  but  because  he  labours  to  defeat  the  end  of 
the  christian  redemption  ?  And  what  is  there  in  the  sin  of 
30 


234  SERMON  XVI. 

a  son  of  Abraham,  which  is  transmuted  into  a  virtue  the  mo- 
ment it  enters  the  heart  of  a  christian  ?  Neither  the  one  nor 
the  other,  we  agree,  can  actually  frustrate  the  purpose  of 
God  ;  yet  both  may  do  it  intentionally :  both  therefore  are 
charged  with  the  consequences  of  having  done  it  actually. 
Say  then,  for  what  Christ  was  put  to  death  by  Jews  and 
Romans,  and  you  have  on  your  lips  the  proof,  that  he  who 
scandalizes  one  of  the  least  of  his  disciples,  crucifies  the  Son 
of  God  afresh,  and  gives  him  up  to  shame.  He  acts  over 
the  tragic  impiety  of  charging  him  with  imposture,  and  in- 
curs the  same  guilt.  His  actions  bespeak  the  same  feelings 
towards  him  and  his  religion.  Besides,  it  is  his  own  maxim, 
that  what  is  done  to  one  of  these  little  ones,  is  done  to  Mm. 
The  ruin  of  man  is  no  trivial  affair ;  yet  it  is  nothing,  com- 
pared with  the  reflection  on  the  Redeemer  which  is  involved 
in  procuring  it.  It  is  virtually  repeating  the  blasphemy, 
that  he  was  judicially  stricken — that  his  sufferings  were  not 
vicarious — or  that  they  were  unavailing  to  the  end  proposed. 
It  is  taking  the  well-earned  spoil  out  of  his  hand — the  cap- 
tive from  the  train  of  his  deliverer.  And  if  all  his  disciples 
were  scandalized,  when  Judas  betrayed  him  into  the  hands  of 
his  enemies,  although  to  them  the  consequences  were  not  fa- 
tal, then,  though  the  modern  disciple  be  not  finally  lost,  the 
same  wo  falls  on  him  through  whom  a  similar  scandal 
cometh  :  and  to  deceive,  discourage,  or  prejudice  him 
against  his  Redeemer,  is  to  be  guilty  of  the  same  crime  for 
which  his  murderers  have  been  a  hissing,  and  a  proverb,  and 
a  curse  unto  this  day. 

And  is  any  revealed  penalty  too  heavy  for  him,  who,  in 
view  of  a  present  gratification,  or  even  an  eternal  triumph, 
can  hold  up  to  derision,  in  the  person  of  his  disciple,  the 
Lord  of  glory  ?  To  wound  a  brother's  conscience,  remem- 
ber, is  to  sin  against  Christ.  Surely  the  plague  of  one's 
own  heart  is  enough,  without  any  of  our  helps,  to  make  his 


SERMON  XVI.  235 

cross  a  stumbling  block  to  them  who  perish  ;  and  it  needs 
all  our  wisdom,  and  charity,  and  self-denial,  and  cheerful 
and  patient  labour,  and  more  than  all,  to  cause  its  offence  to 
cease.  How  inglorious,  then,  the  persevering  effort,  to  ren- 
der it  an  insurmountable  barrier  to  our  neighbour's  salva- 
tion !  And  if  he  dies  without  mercy  who  persuades  men  to 
revolt  from  Moses,  of  how  much  sorer  punishment  should 
he  be  thought  worthy,  who  teaches  men  to  trample  on  the 
blood  of  the  Son  of  God,  or  count  it  a  common  and  ineffec- 
tual thing ! 

III.  And  yet,  in  the  last  place,  it  is  so  common  a  sin,  that 
our  danger  of  falling  into  it,  requires  an  admonition  to  holy 
and  constant  circumspection.  No  man,  I  am  aware,  com- 
mences his  career  in  life  with  the  specific  purpose  of  preju- 
dicing Christianity,  or  ruining  the  hopes  of  its  disciples. 
No  woman  deliberately  forms  a  design  of  leading  her  guests 
into  the  depths  of  hell.  But  many  a  man,  and  many  a 
woman,  has  been  the  occasion  of  this  transcendant  sin  ;  and 
whoever  shall  find  at  last,  that  such  have  been  the  direct 
and  necessary  tendency  and  effect  of  their  conversation  and 
conduct,  will  hear  their  protestations  of  innocence,  opposed 
by  the  cries  of  all,  who,  through  their  pernicious  influence, 
have  died  in  their  iniquity.  Those  souls  will  testify,  as  did 
the  blood  of  Abel  against  his  brother,  that  this  man,  and 
that  woman  were  their  murderers.  It  was  because  3'ou  nev- 
er discountenanced  my  destructive  habits,  but  encouraged 
me  by  your  example,  that  I  continued  in  fatal  error,  and 
lost  my  soul.  It  was  because  you  sought  to  please,  and 
not  to  profit  me  ;  because  you,  whom  I  looked  to  as  a  guide, 
corrupted  instead  of  labouring  to  purify  me.  You  pronoun- 
ced innocent,  those  opinions  which  led  me  to  relax  my  ef- 
forts— those  amusements  which  entranced,  and  those  em- 
ployments which  led  me  imperceptibly  from  my  devotion  to 
God,  and  brought  me  finally  to  shame.     You  taught  me  to 


236  SERMON  XVI. 

treat  strict  conformity  to  christian-  precept  as  superstition, 
and  hatred  to  popular  errors  as  a  prejudice  of  education. 
You  prevailed  over  my  scruples  of  conscience,  and  learned 
me  effectually  to  deny  the  God  that  is  above.  You  taught 
me  the  inefficacy  of  good  works,  seeing  a  man  is  justified  on- 
ly by  faith ;  and  left  me  indifferent  to  the  reality  and  nature 
of  my  faith,  because  good  men  differed  in  their  views  of 
christian  doctrine.  Thus  will  lost  souls  criminate  their  lead- 
ers and  accomplices  in  sin,  and  many  will  first  learn  the  ex- 
tent of  their  mischievous  influence  in  prejudicing  each  other 
against  the  gospel,  in  those  mutual  criminations.  But  if 
these  things,  treated  now  with  much  indifference,  actually 
become  an  occasion  of  men's  perdition,  and  of  an  irretrieva- 
ble mistake  to  those  who  walk  by  each  other's  side,  then  to 
one  another  men  will  owe  their  destruction. 

What  is  there  more  forcible  than  right  words  ?  Yet  when 
you  have  seen  your  neighbour  fattening  like  the  ox  for  the 
slaughter,  you  have  not  afforded  him  even  your  advice  ; 
and  he  has  inferred  from  your  silence,  that  you,  reputed  a 
virtuous  man,  must  have  thought  him  in  the  way  to  heaven. 
Thus  by  the  scandals  of  omission  and  neglect,  as  well  as- 
those  of  profane  counsel  and  wicked  example,  thousands  are 
led  on  in  a  course  of  iniquity,  till  it  is  too  late  to  undeceive 
them.  And  it  is  because  the  ruin  is  so  gradual  and  imper- 
ceptible, that  we  do  not  shudder  at  the  thought  of  its  com- 
monness, or  perhaps  never  think  at  all  either  of  sharing  in 
the  sin,  or  partaking  of  its  plagues.  How  few  are  there, 
who  seem  aware,  that  it  is  not  enough  that  we  do  not  our- 
selves fall  into  gross  sins,  but  that  we  are  required  also  to 
save  others  from  them,  with  fear  plucking  them  out  of  the 
fire  ;  and  above  all,  that  we  do  not  by  any  means  cause  them 
to  err  ! 

But  who  are  they,  thus  in  danger — thus  needing  a  cau- 
tion to  greater  circumspection  ?     Who  are  they,  thus  em- 


SERMON  XVI.  237 

barked  with  the  great  adversary  in  plunging  men  into  de- 
struction and  perdition  ?  Lead  me  to  that  father,  who,  by 
his  prayerless  and  ungodly  life,  teaches  his  children  to  be 
ashamed  of  the  gospel  of  Christ,  that  I  may  seasonably  say 
to  him — "  thou  art  the  man."  Lead  me  to  that  mother,  who 
turns  over  her  children  to  a  hireling,  for  all  their  instruction 
in  the  duties  of  religion,  that  she  may  indulge  herself  in  the 
pleasures  of  the  world,  that  without  any  false  complaisance, 
I  may  say  to  her — it  is  you,  madam,  dead  while  you  live, 
who  are  to  hear  one  day,  in  the  bitterness  of  your  soul,  that 
the  wo  was  meant  for  you.  It  is  j'ou,  servant  of  Mammon  ! 
who  say  to  all  around  you  in  your  haste  to  be  rich,  that  the 
Son  of  God  mistook  the  one  thing  needful.  It  is  you,  fool- 
ish talker,  and  jester  at  the  mysteries  of  the  cross,  corrupt- 
ing the  unwary  by  your  boast  of  a  better,  a  more  enlighten- 
ed Christianity.  It  is  you,  wise  man,  disputer  of  this  world, 
who,  contemning  the  sensibility  of  an  awakened  conscience, 
teach  it  to  put  away  the  fears  of  hell,  and  the  threats  of  God,  as 
childish  weakness;  and  the  thoughts  of  eternity,  as  unsuited 
to  the  gaiety  of  youth,  and  learn  your  victim  to  "make  a 
mock  at  sin."  It  is  you,  opposer  of  the  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  who,  by  an  affected  morality  destructive  of  all  the 
principles  of  the  gospel,  sacrifice  the  soul  to  the  spirit  of 
pride,  and  the  spirit  of  the  world.  Above  all,  it  is  you, 
minister  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  lower  down  the  standard  of 
religion  and  morals,  by  keeping  out  of  sight  and  out  of 
mind,  the  spirit  of  truth  as  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  error ; 
and  who,  instead  of  being  the  savour  and  the  light  of  soci- 
ety, are  the  vej-y  patron  and  apology  of  its  tastelessness  and 
darkness.  And  thus  it  happens,  that  in  a  world  lying  in 
wickedness,  they  who  are  most  sacredly  bound  to  become 
its  guides  and  reformers,  are  but  blind  leaders  of  the  blind. 
Be  not  surprised  then,  christians  !  that  our  Lord  has  ad- 
monished his  professed  disciples,   and  even  his  ministers, 


23S  SERMON  XVI. 

thus.  Be  astonished  rather,  the  sin  being  thus  common  and 
thus  great,  that  you  are  so  incautious  in  the  advice  you  give, 
and  so  insensible  of  your  neglect  in  that  you  fail  to  give  j 
so  little  watchful  over  your  tongue,  your  manners,  your 
morals,  your  doctrines,  your  very  air  and  temper,  in  the 
most  ordinary,  as  well  as  sacred  business  of  life.  Beware 
lest  you  corrupt  and  lead  astray,  a  community  of  which  you 
should  be  the  reformation  and  the  hope.  Take  heed,  lest  by 
the  character  of  your  intercourse  with  men,  you  subvert  the 
foundations  of  their  religious  welfare,  and  alienate  them  still 
more  from  Christ,  by  leaving  them  to  suppose  that  his  yoke 
is  painful  to  you,  and  his  burden  intolerable.  Let  them 
never  derive,  from  the  premises  given  them  in  your  profes- 
sions, a  conclusion  not  found  in  your  example.  Constrain 
them  to  acknowledge,  that  wisdom's  ways  are  ways  of  pleas- 
antness, and  that  all  her  paths  are  peace.  It  is  indeed  im- 
possible but  that  offences  come,  but  if  you  have  any  respect 
to  that  charity  which  Jesus  Christ  exemplified  in  behalf  of 
the  world,  let  not  these  scandals  be  found,  either  in  your 
wanton  transgressions,  or  heedless  neglects.  Put  it  not  in 
the  power  of  him  who  watches  for  your  baitings,  and  who 
would  feed  upon  your  sin-offering,  as  the  hunger-bitten  upon 
any  food,  to  plead  the  want  of  one  christian  example — to 
stumble  over  yours  into  perdition,  by  his  discovery  of  an 
entire  contrast,  between  the  rule  of  your  devotedness  and  the 
tenor  of  your  life.  Excite  in  others  no  doubts,  and  let 
them  never  avail  themselves  of  any  hope  of  impunity,  by 
such  a  worldliness,  or  suspicious  morality  in  you,  as  seems 
to  say— we  have  but  one  lot,  we  go  together  to  the  same 
place  ;  for  the  effects  of  our  faith,  and  their  unbelief,  have  a 
common  and  undistinguishable  character.      * 

It  is  not  indeed  to  be  expected  that  the  world  will  be  just, 
either  to  Christ  or  to  his  followers  ;  but  so  much  the   more 


SERMON  XVI.  239 

ready  as  they  are  to  upbraid,  and  to  find  apologies  for  their 
sins,  in  the  lives  of  christians,  so  much  the  more  important 
to  their  salvation  is  it,  that  their  reproaches  be  made  to  re- 
coil upon  themselves  ;  and  for  this,  that  you  so  serve  God 
in  all  things,  as  to  have  an  approving  witness  in  their  con- 
sciences : — that,  as  the  sons  of  God,  you  be  blameless  and 
harmless,  without  desert  of  rebuke,  in  the  midst  of  a  crooked 
and  perverse  generation.  It  is  not  to  answer  the  unreason- 
able demands  of  a  capricious  and  contradictory  mind,  that 
you  are  called  of  God.  An  angel  could  not  do  this.  Jesus 
Christ  himself,  with  all  his  purity  and  perfectness,  could  not 
do  it.  It  is  only  to  let  your  conversation  and  deportment 
be  such  as  becometh  the  gospel;  that  they  may  derive  from 
them  no  countenance  for  their  excess  of  passion,  their  self- 
ishness, their  ambition,  their  sensuality,  their  love  to  a  world 
whose  fashion  passes  away.  The  more  we  discover  in  the 
wicked  of  a  propensity  to  criminate  us,  to  observe  and  take 
advantage  of  our  frailties,  and  failings,  and  blunder  over 
them  into  self-destruction,  the  more  does  charity  require  us 
to  guard  against  giving  them  occasion  against  themselves, 
and  the  character  of  our  religion ;  and  the  more  is  the  real 
disciple  constrained,  for  their  good  and  God's  glory,  to  shun 
"even  the  appearance  of  evil."  Thus  do  we  give, and  most 
Unostentatiously  too,  the  highest  and  most  effective  expres- 
sion of  our  love  to  souls,  and  of  him  who  bled  for  their  re- 
demption from  all  iniquity,  and  to  purify  them  unto  himself. 
Let  us  associate  as  many  as  we  can  with  us,  in  our  pil- 
grimage to  the  better  country,  and  dissociate  as  many  as  we 
can  influence,  from  the  larger  company  who  are  thronging 
the  way  to  death.  And  if  it  be  vile  to  propagate  a  purer  re- 
ligion than  may  content  the  mass  of  mankind,  and  to  prose- 
lyte, from  among  every  denomination  unto  Christ,  a  pecu- 
liar people,  let  us  be  more  vile;  and  let  us  not  be  ashamed  to 


240  SERMON  XVI. 

let  any  man  see,  what  is  the  hope  or  business  of  our  calling. 
And  to  press  upon  you,  beloved  christians  !  the  subject  of 
your  duty  and  your  danger,  by  the  most  awful  example,  re- 
member that  Peter  himself — the  man  on  whose  noble  con- 
fession the  Saviour  promised  to  build  his  church — even  this 
man,  once  fell  into  this  sin ;  and  if  he,  for  want  of  such  cir- 
cumspection could  not  stand,  who  of  us  needs  not  to  take 
heed  lest  he  fall.  And  a  christian,  you  will  recollect,  sel- 
dom falls  alone  ;  and  though  his  lapse  should  be  followed 
with  repentance,  yet  the  many  who  will  imitate  his  defection, 
will  never  imitate  his  repentance. 

I  make  but  another  remark,  on  a  subject  which  might 
profitably  fill  a  volume  with  pertinent  and  important  reflec- 
tions : — and  it  respects  the  .vast  responsibility  attaching  to 
men  of  influence  in  every  department  of  society— to  those 
men,  of  every  community,  who  have,  I  had  almost  said,- the 
virtue  and  the  souls  of  men  within  their  power — who  stand 
at  helm,  and  move  the  ship's  crew  whithersoever  they  please. 
What  leader  in  fashionable  vice,  by  returning  to  God,  and 
giving  a  conspicuous  example  of  christian  excellence  in  the 
circle  where  its  glory  is  never  witnessed,  might  not  save'  a 
host  froifl  death,  and  hide  a  multitude  of  sins  ?  What  head- 
man, in  any  of  the  lesser  associations  of  our  associating  and 
banding  age,  might  not  by  his  faithfulness,  and  discreet  ex- 
ertion of  his  moral  influence,  anticipate  the  business  of  the 
elect  angels,  and  with  more  than  angelic  privilege,  gather 
out  of  the  kingdom  many  of  them  that  oft'end  and  do  ini- 
quity; and  instead  of  casting  them  into  outer  darkness, 
bring  them  within  the  pale  of  the  saved  ? 

Let  us  think  then  of  our  responsibilities,  whatever  be  our 
office  in  the  church  or  in  the  world,  and  in  the  strength  of 
him,  who,  in  them  that  have  no  might,  increased!  strength, 
and  who  renews  the  power  of  the  faint  but   pursuing,  re- 


SERMON  XVI.  241 

s^olve — that  whether  our  companions  are  to  perish  or  be 
saved,  we,  like  the  holy  Apostles  engaged  in  the  same  hon- 
orable warfare,  will  be  a  sweet  savor  to  God  in  both  : — that 
the  one  shall  have  no  help  from  us  in  his  career  to  perdition, 
nor  the  other  be  made  to  triumph  in  Christ  without  our  sub* 
stantial  sympathy  and  aid. 


31 


SERMON  XVII. 


♦®^#***' 


THE    NATURE    OF    GRACIOUS    COMPASSION. 

Luke,  xix.  41. 
And  when  he  was  come  near,  he  beheld  the  city,  and  wept  over  U. 

JHLOW  different  are  the  emotions  produced  in  different  men, 
by  events  of  the  same  character  !  How  totally  opposite,  in 
sentiment  and  feeling,  the  ambitious  and  the  humble  !  The 
one,  standing  on  the  ruins  of  empires  desolated  by  his  arms, 
weeps  at  the  thought  that  there  are  no  more  cities  to  lay 
waste,  no  more  fields  to  ravage,  no  more  nations  to  slaugh- 
ter or  enslave. — The  other,  riding  in  triumph  into  the  city 
whose  impending  destruction  he  had  in  vain  endeavored  to 
avert,  and  whose  obstinate  rejection  of  the  means  of  deliver- 
ance he  had  in  vain  warned  and  entreated  them  to  put  away, 
is  filled  with  compassion,  and  in  view  of  their  self-wrought 
misery  pours  forth  a  torrent  of  tears.  Such,  in  one  impor- 
tant feature,  is  the  difference  between  the  man  of  the  world 
and  his  followers,  and  the  man  Christ  Jesus  and  the  children 


SERMON  XVII.  240 

of  the  kingdom  of  God.  "And  when  he  was  come  near,  he 
beheld  the  city,  and  wept  over  it — saying,  if  thou  hadst 
known,  even  thou,  at  least  in  this  thy  day,  the  things  which 
belong  unto  thy  peace,  but  now  they  are  hid  from  thine  eyes. 
For  the  days  shall  come  upon  thee,  that  thine  enemies  shall 
cast  a  trench  about  thee,  and  compass  thee  round,  and  keep 
thee  in  on  every  side,  and  shall  lay  thee  even  with  the 
ground,  and  thy  children  within  thee  :  and  they  shall  not 
leave  in  thee  one  stone  upon  another,  because  thou  knewest 
not  the  time  of  thy  visitation." 

Compassionate  Saviour  !  What  a  model  of  holy  tender- 
ness hast  thou  left  us  in  thine  example  !  Brethren,  did  he 
not  fitly  weep  ?  Would  not  your  hearts  have  melted,  in  view 
of  that  devoted  city,  the  glorious  place  of  the  tabernacle  of 
the  Most  High,  and  the  capital  of  the  beauty  of  kingdoms  ? 
Would  not  you  have  wept,  had  you  been  possessed  of  con- 
scious forebodings  like  his,  that  even  his  tears  of  blood  would 
avail  nothing  for  its  salvation  ? — That  not  only  his  tender 
expostulations,  and  faithful  admonitions,  but  even  the  sacri- 
fice of  his  life  in  their  behalf,  should  be  contemned  by  theun- 
tractable  and  unfeeling  inhabitants  of  that  city,  and  his  blood, 
according  to  their  imprecation,  descend  upon  them  and  their 
children  I  Ah  !  no— this  is  not  the  man  whom  the'  people 
of  this  world  delight  to  honor,  and  to  imitate.  He  who  sub- 
jugates nations  with  the  sword,  and  by  the  terror  of  his 
fleets  commands  the  abundance  of  the  seas,  shall  find  nations 
doing  him  reverence,  and  a\\  kings  bowing  themselves  down 
before  him.  But  he  who  melts  at  the  self-wrought  miseries 
of  a  whole  race,  and  even  of  a  single  city,  nay,  a  single 
soul,  is  "  despised  and  rejected  of  men."  Alexander  and 
Caesar  are  the  objects  of  the  world's  envy  and  idolatry ; 
Jesus  upon  the  foal  of  an  ass,  weeping  over  human  guilt  and 
wretchedness,  is  their  scoff  and  their  song.  If  for  this  there 
be   not  a  day  of  retribution,  reason   and   righteousness  per- 


244  SERMON  XVII. 

ish  together,  and  all  our  faith  in  the  powers  of  the  world  to 
come  is  but  "  the  airy  fabric  of  a  vision." 

Jesus  Christ,  ray  brethren,  shews  us,  in  this  scene  of  his 
personal  ministry,  the  nature  of  gracious  compassion  ;  and 
though  it  was  unavailing  to  that  incorrigible  people,  it  is 
not,  in  any  instance  of  its  exercise,  without  its  use  to  some 
portion  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  His  were  consecrated  tears  ; 
their  remembrance  will  be  preserved  by  his  followers  ;  and 
they  will  speak  a  language  to  the  wicked,  in  the  last  day, 
which  cannot  but  overwhelm  them  with  confusion,  and  justify 
in  their  consciences,  the  sentence  of  their  Judge.  I  pro- 
pose— 

First,  to  explain  the  nature  of  gracious  compassion,  or 
pious  grief: 

And  secondly  to  point  out  its  use. 

I.  They  who  have  been  unaccustomed  to  distinguish,  in 
their  thoughts  and  affections,  between  holiness  and  sinful- 
ness, may  find  it  difficult  to  conceive  that  any  difference  can 
exist  in  the  nature  of  man's  compassion.  They  will  naturally 
prefer  the  more  common  and  lax  sentiment,  that  all  compas- 
sion, pity,  grief,  wherever  found,  is  in  kind  essentially  the 
same  affection,  and  admits  only  of  a  common  source.  But 
such  a  supposition  cannot  stand  with  the  inspired  represen- 
tation of  the  human  and  divine  character  ;  nor  with  a  candid 
comparison  of  one  man  with  another.  There  is  a  sympa- 
thetic tenderness  of  soul,  at  least  in  some  stages  of  man's 
life,  inseparable  from  human  nature.  The  sacred  writers 
admit,  and  we  are  all  competent  witnesses  to  the  fact,  that 
the  very  enemies  of  God  may  be  the  subjects  of  real  compas- 
sion, which  still  partakes  nothing  of  a  divine  or  holy  char- 
acter. We  are  all  conscious  of  a  kind  of  compassion  which 
is  as  easily  excited,  and  brought  as  sensibly  into  exercise, 
by  reading  a  fictitious  story,  as  by  a  scene  of  distress  in  the 
sober  realities  of  life.     The  nature  of  this  emotion  may  be 


SERMON  XVII.  245 

neither  good  nor  evil ;  it  may  be,  in  its  effect,  either  useful 
or  pernicious,  and  cannot,  therefore,  be  of  the  nature  of 
moral  excellence.  Having  neither  benevolence  for  its 
source,  nor  the  glory  of  God  for  its  object,  nor  any  thing 
necessarily  useful  in  its  tendency,  it  cannot  be  the  fruit  of  his 
Spirit,  and  is  not  therefore  entitled  to  the  character  of  gra- 
cious compassion.  It  is  found  alike,  in  the  heart  polluted 
by  atheism  and  infidelity*,  and  in  the  soul  of  the  mere  specu- 
lative believer  in  Christianity.  It  is  often  nothing  more  than 
the  organ,  or  the  instrument,  of  the  most  subtle  and  refined 
selfishness.  It  is  moved,  and  moves  its  subject,  to  action, 
without  regard  to  law,  to  fitness,  or  to  God.  If  then  there 
can  be  no  benevolence,  in  the  exercise  of  affection  on  that 
which  is  not;  if  natural  compassion  is  common  to  men  in  a 
state  of  nature  and  of  grace,  then  the  importance  of  the  dis- 
tinction, and  the  reason  for  insisting  on  it,  must  be  already 
apparent.  The  man  of  feeling,  of  great  sensibility,  and  of  a 
ready  sympathy  with  the  wretched,  is  in  danger  of  mistaking 
his  emotions  for  a  holy  temper.  In  order  to  relieve  him 
from  his  danger,  it  is  necessary  that  he  recollect  that  com- 
passion is  sometimes  witnessed  among  the  barbarous  tribes 
of  men  ;  that  a  species  of  it  is  natural  even  to  irrational  ani- 
mals. To  some  of  these  animals  the  scent  of  blood  is  obvi- 
ously oppressive,  and  calls  forth  signs  of  tenderness;  and  the 
injury  of  their  offspring,  and  the  distress  of  one  of  their  spe- 
cies, produces  loud  moans,  and  bitter  lamentations.  Indeed, 
in  one  of  our  domestic  animals,  there  is  a  sympathy  extend- 
ing*even  to  the  family  of  man,  and  not  unfrequently  exerted 
in  a  kind  of  beneficence  substantially  useful  to  a  suffering 
member  of  his  household.  Unless,  therefore,  we  are  pre- 
pared to  admit  the  possibility  of  religious  affection  being 
found  in  the  brutal  nature,  we  must  abandon  the  supposition 
that  any  thing  of  the  nature  of  virtue  is  combined  with  mere 
natural  compassion. 


24G  SERMON  XVII. 

To  disembarrass  the  subject  still  more,  take  with  you  t» 
its  examination,  the  well  attested  fact  that  our  own  interest, 
real  or  imagined,  is  the  exciting  cause  of  natural  compassion. 
To  avoid  pain,  or  to  secure  pleasure,  is  its  ultimate  end.  Ev- 
ery object  in  distress,  whether  intelligent  or  merely  animal, 
is  sufficient,  in  the  sight  of  a  compassionate  heart,  to  excite 
sympathy.  This  fact  will  perhaps  of  itself,  account  for  all 
the  tenderness  of  feeling,  and  all  the  vigor  of  exertion,  put 
forth  to  alleviate  human  suffering,  by  those  whose  springs  of 
action  never  rise  above  the  earth  on  which  they  dwell,  and 
are  supplied  and  fed  only  from  beneath.  Since,  however, 
the  desire  of  avoiding  pain,  or  securing  a  temporary  pleasure, 
is  not  necessarily  of  the  nature  of  christian  virtue,  the  conclu- 
sion is  unavoidable,  that  there  is  just  ground  for  the  distinc- 
tion which  has  been  insisted  on  between  natural  and  gracious 
compassion. 

The  latter  was  the  compassion  of  Jesus  Christ ;  and  to 
him  all  his  followers  are,  in  this  respect,  in  some  degree  con- 
formed. It  was  not  the  sight  of  distress,  nor  the  desire  of 
avoiding  pain,  nor  the  prospect  of  securing  pleasure,  which 
produced  his  grief:  but  the  sinfulness  which  exposed  the 
people  around  him,  ignorant  as  they  were  of  their  destiny, 
to  unavoidable  destruction.  This  affection,  of  consequence, 
has  its  source  in  love  to  God,  which  is  inseparably  connect- 
ed with  love  to  men,  and  is  necessarily  of  the  nature  of  moral 
excellence;  its  tendency  always  salutary,  and  its  legitimate 
effects  always  good.  All  distress,  of  course,  does  not  excite 
sorrow  in  the  pious  mind,  or  give  it  pain,  as  in  the  case  of 
natural  compassion,  which  is  often  blind,  and  weak,  and 
vicious,  in  its  operation.  On  the  contrary,  in  many  cases,  it 
is  a  source  of  gratitude  and  pleasure.  For  that  keenest  of 
all  pangs,  produced  by  a  conviction  of  sin,  and  righteous- 
ness, and  judgment ;  and  the  penitence  which  usually  suc- 
ceeds, furnish  the  pious  beholder,  with  a  cause  of  exquisite 


SERMON  XVII.  247 

delight.  Such  emotions  and  affections,  in  every  offender 
against  God,  are  absolutely  requisite  to  his  virtue  and  peace, 
and  are  honorable  to  the  Lawgiver.  The  purest  spirits,  of 
consequence,  behold  their  operation  with  joy  ;  and  there  is 
gladness  over  such  subjects  of  sorrow  and  grief,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  angels  of  God.  Hence,  in  the  instructive  para- 
ble of  the  rich  man  and  Lazarus,  natural  compassion  is  ex- 
hibited in  it's  best  dress,  supplicating  the  conversion  of  five 
brethren,  lest  they  should  come  to  share  and  aggravate  its 
own  wretchedness  ;  while  gracious  pity,  equally  desirous  of 
their  conversion,  has  an  entirely  different  motive,  and  oper- 
ates to  a  higher  and  for  a  nobler  end.  The  first  is  selfish, 
and  regardless  of  the  divine  glory  ;  the  last,  satisfied  with 
Moses  and  the  Prophets,  acknowledges  that  God  has  done 
enough  for  their  conversion,  and  declines  the  course  of  ac- 
tion which  natural  compassion  prescribes. 

Gracious  compassion  is  still  further  distinguishable  in  its 
nature,  by  the  means  it  employs  to  accomplish  its  ends.  The 
greatest  good  of  rational  being  is  its  ultimate  end,  and  the 
highest  welfare  of  each  individual,  so  far  as  it  is  compatible 
with  that  of  the  whole.  The  means  of  promoting  these  ends, 
must,  of  consequence,  be  holy — Truth,  fidelity,  integrity, 
and  a  supreme  regard  to  the  authority  of  God,  as  paramount 
to  every  other  consideration.  Take  an  example  of  no  un- 
common occurrence.  Here  is  an  unsanctified  soul  filled  with 
remorse  of  conscience,  under  a  deep  conviction  of  its  guilt 
and  danger — it  is  in  extreme  distress  :  all  agree  in  feeling  a 
desire  for  its  relief;  but  all  are  not  equally  indifferent  about 
the  means  which  should  be  used  to  relieve  it.  Natural  com- 
passion cries  "  peace,  peace,  while  there  is  no  peace."  It  is 
indifferent  to  the  means,  so  it  can  soothe  the  anguish  and  mit- 
igate the  distress,  and  thus  relieve  itself,  and  the  object  of  its 
sympathy,  from  present  suffering.  But  gracious  compas- 
sion looks  through  this  distress,  and  beyond  its  suffering,  to 


248  SERMON  XVII. 

a  brighter  and  better  day.  It  had  rather  share  the  pain,  than 
sacrifice  truth,  and  the  honor  of  God,  or  the  salvation  of  the 
soul.  It  probes  still  deeper  the  wound,  and,  like  the  faithful 
surgeon,  amputates  the  limb  to  save  the  life  :  withholding  all 
artifice  and  flattery,  and  offering  no  other  means  of  relief, 
than  such  as  shall  secure  the  divine  glory,  and  the  highest 
interests  of  the  soul.  Take  a  still  stronger  case — that  of 
the  impenitent  and  unreconciled  sinner,  on  a  dying  bed.  In 
the  fullest  exercise,  and  under  the  immediate  influence  of 
natural  compassion,  man,  tender  of  his  friend,  and  more  ten- 
der of  himself,  hides  from  him  his  condition  and  his  needs. 
Unwilling  to  believe  and  tell  the  story  of  the  ghastly  face, 
and  of  the  eye  already  closing  in  death,  he  pretends  to  see 
roses  on  the  cheek  ;  and  in  his  deceitful  smile  and  equivocal 
language  promises  a  return  of  health.  It  is  not  denied  that 
the  pretext  is  fair.  It  is  to  prevent  the  more  speedy  disso- 
lution of  the  beloved  object,  and  save  it  from  further  an- 
guish. So  it  reasons,  and  so  it  acts.  Look  a  moment,  on 
the  other  hand,  at  the  conduct  of  the  gracious  heart.  It  be- 
holds the  unhappy,  hopeless  soul,  on  the  verge  of  time,  un- 
consciously raising  the  wing  to  take  its  flight  to  the  judg-, 
ment  seat  of  Christ.  It  feels  acutely,  it  is  distressed,  and 
thus  it  reasons.  If  I  conceal  at  this  time  this  mortal's  dan- 
ger, all  hope  of  his  salvation  is  extinguished  forever.  If  I 
hide  his  guilt,  he  will  die  in  his  sins.  If  he  repent  not,  nor 
flee  for  refuge  to  the  hope  of  the  gospel,  his  soul  is  lost — the 
ruin  in  such  case  is  irremediable.  If  I  speak  1  shall  add  to 
his  distress — I  shall  give  a  momentary  agony  to  his  suffer- 
ing spirit.  In  the  act  of  probing  his  wounds,  I  shall  also 
open  one  in  my  own  breast ;  but  in  neglect  of  this  course  I  do 
nothing  to  save  his  soul  from  death.  I  will  therefore  suffer ; 
I  will  cheerfully  become  the  instrument  of  his  sufferings  for 
a  time,  that  I  may  minister  to  his  happy  eternity.  I  publish 
his  danger — I  tenderly  shew  him  the  urgency  of  his  case, 


SERMON  XVII.  249 

the  necessity  of  immediate  action,  the  sufficiency  of  Christ, 

the  only  way  of  salvation.     Who  now  is  the  monster who 

the  savage — who  the  murderer? — The  compassion  which 
wraps  up  the  dying  sinner  in  invincible  ignorance  of  his 
danger,  or  that  which  tears  away  the  veil  from  the  eye  just 
on  the  edge  of  the  precipice,  and  leads  it  to  look  with  con- 
cern upon  the  narrow  way  of  life  ?  Let  him  answer  who 
knows  the  value  of  a  soul,  and  the  worth  of  a  moment  to  the 
dying  sinner,  when  properly  employed.*  So  reasoned,  so 
felt,  so  acted  the  Son  of  God.  He  knew  the  time  of  man's 
visitation,  and  with  generous  aim  pierced,  and  divided  asun- 
der, the  soul  and  spirit ;  and  when  all  these  means  proved 
unavailing,  and  Jerusalem  would  not  hearken  to  his  voice, 
he  lifted  up  his  eyes  on  the  city  approaching  its  fate,  beheld 
and  wept. 

The  relief  which  natural  compassion  proposes,  and  with 
which  it  is  satisfied,  betrays  its  unhallowed  character.  As  it 
does  not  inquire  into  the  lawfulness  of  the  means,  so  neither 
does  it  regard  the  solidity  or  duration  of  the  comfort  which 
it  labors  to  bestow.  You  may  often  witness  the  most  gross 
deceit  practised  upon  the  artless  child,  to  pacify  its  insatiate 
cravings  for  improper  objects.  You  may  find  men  adminis- 
tering moral  poison  to  the  mind,  in  the  means  employed  to 
manage  a  disordered  imagination,  or  to  free  the  distracted 
and  itself  from  temporary  calamity.  Is  this  genuine  philan- 
thropy ?  Did  Jesus  thus  do  evil  that  good  might  come  ? 
No — he  would  have  practised  no  such  guile,  to  have  saved 
himself  from  crucifixion.     He  would  not  have  corrupted  a 


*  These  remarks  deserve  the  deepest  attention  from  those  Physicians 
and  friends,  who  are  so  reluctant  to  have  his  real  state  communicated  to  a 
dying  man.  It  may  be  proper  however  to  add,  they  are  made  on  the 
strongest  supposition.  If  a  minister's  faithfulness  is  clothed  with  tender- 
ness, the  danger  of  increasing  the  disease,  or  accelerating  death,  is  veiy 
small. 

32 


250  SERMON  XVII. 

single  soul,  by  false  doctrines,  or  unholy  stratagems,  to  have 
saved  a  kingdom.  It  satisfies  natural  compassion  to  afford 
relief.  It  often  forgets  as  soon  as  possible,  the  sorrows  of  an 
anguished  spirit,  and  weakly  strives  to  ward  off  approaching 
evil,  by  shutting  the  eyes  to  the  inevitable  event.  Not  so 
the  compassion  fitly  called  christian.  The  object  of  this  is 
not  merely  to  relieve  itself,  or  by  any  means  to  alleviate  the 
miseries  of  others.  It  rests  satisfied  with  nothing  less  than 
the  substantial,  durable  and  immortal  consolation  of  the  suf- 
ferer ;  and  exerts  itself  in  the  use  of  divinely  appointed 
means,  till  this  object  be  accomplished ;  or  if  such  means 
fail,  weeps  over  the  hardness  of  that  heart,  which  destroys 
or  prevents  their  efficacy.  Witness  the  conduct  of  the  holy 
Prophet — If  ye  will  not  hearken,  to  give  glory  to  God,  my 
soul  shall  weep  for  you,  in  secret  places.  Witness  the  pray- 
ers, reproofs,  and  zeal,  of  the  holy  Lamb  of  God  :  hispa- 
tience,  diligence,  and  meekness;  his  willingness  to  suffer, 
his  faithfulness  in  refusing  to  heal  slightly  the  hurt  of  the 
daughter  of  God's  people.  Brethren,  if  we  have  not  the 
spirit  of  Christ,  we  are  none  of  his.  If  we  have  not  his 
compassion,  our  charity  is  like  sounding  brass — -always  hol- 
low, and  empty. 

Finally,  natural  compassion,  as  it  begins  with  itself,  and 
terminates  on  its  own  interests,  generally  ends  with  carrying 
its  meagre  consolations  to  a  friend  ;  while  that  which  is  of 
God,  is  alive  to  the  sorrows  of  the  stranger,  extends  to  the 
soul  of  the  suffering  prisoner,  and  the  wretched  of  every 
character  and  clime,  and  pours  its  oil  and  its  wine  into  the 
bosom  of  its  hard-hearted  and  deadly  enemy.  The  proper 
question  is,  not  what  a  man's  feelings  are  towards  us,  but 
what  is  his  capacity  for  improvement,  for  dignity,  for  happi- 
ness, for  honoring  God,  and  doing  good ;  and  what  our 
means  of  benefitting  him  ?  Could  the  circumstance  of  the 
state  of  men's  affection  towards  us,  be  allowed  to  govern  our 


SERMON  XVII.  251 

compassion  towards  them,  Christ,  surely,  would  not  have 
wept  over  Jerusalem,  nor  died  for  man  ;  nor  should  we  still 
hear  his  sympathetic  voice,  saying  to  the  ungodly,  "in 
strains  as  sweet  as  angels  use,"  "  turn  ye,  turn  ye,  for  why 
will  ye  die."  His  nature  and  example  are  the  model,  on 
which  our  mercifulness  is  to  be  formed,  and  every  emanation 
of  it  from  him,  will  beget  its  own  likeness  on  the  heart  into 
which  it  flows.  He  wept  over  his  enemies  after  they  had 
refused  to  be  comforted  by  him,  and  died  in  sacrifice  to  the 
virtue  which  we  are  so  slow  to  practise,  and  to  suffer  to  be 
practised  on  ourselves.  With  this  imperfect  exhibition  of 
the  nature  of  christian  compassion,  as  distinguishable  from 
that  which  is  common  to  man — 

II.  I  submit  to  your  consideration,  in  the  second  place, 
a  few  remarks  on  its  use.  Gracious  compassion  is  the  source 
of  all  human  enjoyment.  From  this  flowed  the  plan  of 
man's  redemption.  But  for  this,  God  the  Father  had  never 
contrived,  nor  the  Son  executed,  nor  the  Spirit  of  sanetifica- 
tion  applied  it,  to  a  single  soul.  As  in  God  it  is  a  fountain 
whence  all  the  wants  of  our  sinful  world  are  supplied,  and 
all  the  woes  of  the  redeemed  ultimately  relieved  ;  so  in  man, 
it  is  the  grand  means  of  enlarging,  establishing,  and  perfect- 
ing the  kingdom  of  Christ  on  the  earth.  It  is  begotten  in 
man,  when,  beholding  as  in  a  glass  the  glory  of  God,  he  is 
changed  into  the  same  image,  as  by  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord. 
God  is  pleased  to  save  sinners  through,  the  agency  of  men. 
He  has  made  man  a  minister  and  a  witness,  and  sent  him  to 
turn  his  fellow-sinners  from  darkness  unto  light,  and  from 
the  power  of  Satan  unto  God.  But  without  the  operation 
of  this  affection  on  their  hearts,  they  could  not  be  excited  to 
the  labors  and  trials  of  the  christian  ministry  ; — they  would 
not  consent  to  suffer  wrongfully,  and  to  endure  the  contra- 
diction of  sinners,  and,  by  publishing  the  pain-giving  truths 
of  the  gospel,  to  make   men   their  enemies.      "Without  this 


252  SERMON  XVII. 

spirit  of  commiseration,  no  sons  of  consolation  had  carried 
the  glad  tidings  of  salvation  to  a  lost  and  rained  world,  nor 
sons  of  thunder,  at  the  hazard  of  every  worldly  interest,  ex- 
posed the  depravity  of  men's  hearts,  and  patiently  and  im- 
portunately intreated  them  to  be  reconciled  to  God.  It  is 
this  which  has  borne  up  the  faithful  in  every  age,  and  induced 
them  to  take  reproach  and  suffering,  rather  than  inglorious 
ease,  and  made  them  prefer  the  evils  of  the  cross  to  that  con- 
cealment and  perversion  of  the  truth,  which  ensures  the 
friendship  of  the  world.  It  was  this  which  carried  the 
Apostie  of  the  Gentiles  through  all  the  regions  of  ignorance 
and  barbarism,  to  proclaim  the  salvation  of  God,  and  sub- 
vert the  throne  of  iniquity,  and  overturn  the  empire  of  sin 
and  death  :  which,  in  the  cause  of  truth,  lifted  him  above  the 
fears  of  the  Roman  sword,  and  the  flatteries  of  men  who 
would  have  done  him  the  honors  of  their  gods  :  which 
rendered  him  willing  to  die  for  the  name  of  Jesus,  and  for 
the  conviction  of  his  brethren  according  to  the  flesh.  It 
was  this  gracious  compassion  which  waked  in  the  hearts  of 
Swai  tz  and  Vanderkemp,  the  long  slumbering  spirit  of  the 
Apostles,  and  cut  a  way  through  all  the  natural  ties  which 
bind  men  to  their  fire-sides,  their  country,  and  their  altars,  to 
the  benighted,  dying  souls  of  Egypt  and  Ethiopia.  It  is 
this  which  has  continued  the  herculean  labor  of  levelling  the 
mountains,  and  exalting  the  vallies,  making  the  crooked 
straight,  and  the  rough  places  plain,  and  filling  the  moral 
desart  of  India  and  the  Isles  with  the  waters  and  the  seeds 
of  life.  It  was  this  which  set  on  foot  an  expedition,,  at  which 
scoffers  were  amused,  and  on  which  natural  compassion 
looked  in  doubt :  against  which  the  Bacchanalia  Priests  of 
Europe  lifted  the  finger  of  scorn,  and  on  which  Rationalists 
of  America  contemptuously  smiled. — An  expedition,  not- 
withstanding, which  has  made  Hell  to  tremble  for  its  strong- 
holds, and  the  angels  in  the  presence  of  God  to  rejoice,  for 


SERMON  XVII.  253 

the  honors  it  has  already  brought  to  God  and  the  Lamb.  It 
is  this  same  gracious  compassion,  which  animates  the  breasts 
of  all  christian  missionaries,  and  fires  the  zeal  of  all  who  fol- 
low them  with  their  prayers  and  their  alms  ;  and  sends  after 
them,  through  every  uncultivated  and  inhospitable  region 
which  they  traverse,  a  blessing  winged  with  benizons  from 
heaven.  But  for  this,  no  tongue  had  sung  the  anthem 
taught  by  the  heavenly  choir  at  the  nativity  ;  no  human  foot 
trod  the  mountains  of  the  leopards,  or  the  vallies  of  Baca, 
publishing  salvation  ;  no  altar  had  been  reared,  nor  peace- 
offering  arisen,  on  the  bloody  pile  once  sacred  to  supersti- 
tion; nor  Prophet  nor  Priest  said  unto  the  cities  of  Judah, 
behold  your  God. 

If  therefore  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour — if  the 
conversion,  the  salvation,  the  present  comfort  or  future  bless- 
edness of  man  be  desirable — if  there  be  any  thingjust,  lovely, 
and  of  good  report,  in  the  promotion  of  such  objects — then 
is  there  an  utility  in  the  affection  we  are  commending,  high 
as  heaven  and  broader  than  the  sea.  Not  a  single  step,  in 
the  progress  of  man  from  moral  darkness  to  light,  from  cor- 
ruption to  purity,  from  desperation  to  hope,  would  have 
been  ta'<en  without  its  influence.  But  though  of  itself  \  it  is 
unavailing  to  sanctify  and  save  those  on  whom  it  operates, 
it  has  (even  when  unattended  with  divine  efficiency)  its  use. 
It  stimulates  to  noble  and  god-like  enterprizes,  and,  in  seek- 
ing the  good  of  the  great  family  of  man,  adorns  our  nature, 
and  does  honor  to  its  author.  I  am  sensible  that  even  the 
sublime  spectacle,  of  the  Son  of  God  weeping  over  devoted 
Jerusalem,  has  been  thought  by  some  men,  unworthy  a  place 
in  the  sacred  history.  It  is,  says  worldly  wisdom,  a  mark 
of  imperfection  : — it  was  idle  for  the  Son  of  God,  after  the 
day  of  peace  was  gone  by,  to  weep.  Not  so,  deluded 
man  ! — Those  tears  are  not  lost  :  they  are  sacredly  preserv- 
ed ;  they  are  gathered  up  by  the  disciples   of  every  age, 


254  SERMON  XVII. 

and  poured  out  again  over  their  obstinate  and  impenitent 
children,  their  hardened  and  unbelieving  neighbors ;  over 
their  untractable  and  ungodly  people ;  over  the  hj'pocrite 
and  the  deluded  professor.  Nay,  the  influence  of  those  tears 
of  Jesus,  stops  not  here  :  they  are  laid  up  in  heaven,  and 
will  be  presented  at  the  last  day,  as  witnesses  against  those 
who  will  not  know  the  things  belonging  to  their  peace,  in 
the  accepted  time  and  day  of  salvation.  They  will  be  ex- 
hibited there,  to  confound  the  men  who  deny,  or  doubt,  his 
willingness  to  save — as  witnesses  of  his  love,  and  strong  de- 
sire for  the  recovery  of  those  who  would  not  hear,  who  des- 
pised all  his  counsel,  and  would  none  of  his  reproof.  Yes, 
beloved  hearer  !  those  tears,  though  of  no  use  to  the  inhab- 
itants of  Jerusalem,  will  have  their  use  in  relation  to  you,  if 
you  will  be  his  followers  ;  and  if  not,  when  the  wicked  shall 
be  sentenced  to  everlasting  despair,  these  fruits  of  our  Sa- 
viour's compassion — these  strong  proofs  of  the  sincerity  of 
his  offers  and  his  efforts,  and  the  genuineness  of  the  benevo- 
lence from  which  they  flowed,  will  flash  conviction  upon 
every  conscience,  and  render  unnecessary  the  allegation, 
"  O  Israel  thou  hast  destroyed  thyself."  It  was  not  his  in- - 
disposition  to  help,  but  your  incredulity,  that  ruined  you. 
It  was  not  his  want  of  grace,  but  the  enmity  of  your  heart, 
which  condemned  you.  It  was  not  his  decree  of  election, 
but  your  perversion  of  your  liberty  in  abusing  it,  that  de- 
stroyed you.  It  was  not  the  impossibility  of  entering  in  at. 
the  strait  gate,  but  your  preference  of  the  broad  way,  which 
doomed  you  to  perdition. 

Christians  !  this  gracious  compassion  of  Jesus,  which  fires 
your  breast  also,  which  animates  your  intercessions,  your 
labours,  your  expectations,  and  which  you  have  received 
from  his  fulness,  and  employed  for  his  glory,  will  also  be  of 
use  to  you  in  the  great  day  of  account.     It  will  shew  the 


SERMON  XVII.  255 

universe,  that  you  are  partakers  of  the  divine  nature,  that 
you  have  been  co-workers  with  God,  that  you  arc  thereby 
rendered. meet  to  partake  his  glory,  to  enter  into  his  joy. 
It  will  render  clear,  in  the  eyes  of  the  world,  the  doctrine 
that  the  saints  judge  the  world,  and,  by  the  different  nature 
of  their*  compassion,  condemn  those  malignant  spirits,  who 
have  been  the  successful  agents  in  the  temptations,  and  sins, 
and  ruin  of  men's  souls.  Say  not  then  any  longer,  it  is  use- 
less to  be  distressed,  or  vain  to  pray,  or  idle  to  instruct,  or  a 
hopeless  task  to  reprove,  persuade,  and  exhort,  such  as  still 
harden  their  necks,  and  refuse  to  surrender  their  hearts  to 
him  who  bought  them  with  his  blood.  Surely,  in  sight  of 
the  moving  spectacle  at  the  gate  of  Jerusalem,  you  cannot 
be  weary  and  faint  in  your  minds  :  you  will  not  be  discour- 
aged, nor  cease  your  compassionate  exertions  to  convince, 
persuade,  and  save.  However  often  repulsed,  however  long 
and  patient  your  labours  of  love,  and  though  insulted  for 
your  fidelity,  and  finally  forbidden  to  speak  any  more  in 
that  sacred  name,  you  will  depart  from  the  presence  of  his 
enemies,  and  weep  in  secret  places  for  their  pride,  counting- 
it  a  privilege  to  suffer  shame  in  such  a  cause.  And  when  all 
the  tokens  of  the  divine  anger,  seem  to  be  arrayed  against 
the  obstinate  opposers  of  his  kingdom,  and  they  seem  given 
up  judicially  to  delusion,  to  believe  a  lie,  you  will  stop,  and 
contemplate  with  the  friend  of  sinners,  their  dreadful  end  ; 
and  if  conscious  that  you  have  tried  all  the  means  of  God's 
appointment,  and  all  in  vain,  to  bring  them  to  the  knowledge 
of  the  truth,  like  him  you  will  still  have  tears  to  shed  over 
them,  and  a  heart  like  his  to  exclaim — O  that  thou  hadst 
known  in  thy  day  the  things  which  belong  unto  thy  peace. 
Forget  not,  christians  !  that  there  may  be  in  this  assembly 
some  souls,  in  the  very  state  of  those  self-willed  Jews,  whose 
fate  excited  the  commiseration  of  the  Son  of  God.  If  there  is 


25G  SERMON  XVII. 

cause  of  fear,  if  there  is  ground  to  think  there  are  any  here 
who  have  been  often  called,  and  still  refuse,  O  think  ofthem 
when  you  return  to  bless  your  household,  and  remember  that 
"  Jesus  wept." 


SERMON  XVIII 


THE    KINGDOM    OF    CHRIST. 

John,  xviii.  36. 
My  Kingdom  is  not  of  this  world. 

JOOTH  the  character  and  designs  of  Christ  have  been  mis- 
represented. His  friends  have  sometimes  mistaken,  and  his 
enemies  perverted  them.  Weakness  on  the  one  hand,  and 
malignity  on  the  other,  have  combined  to  render  them 
doubtful,  or  suspicious.  Hence  he  was  compelled  to  re- 
prove his  own  disciples  for  their  rashness  and  folly,  and  the 
chief  priests  for  their  malice  and  falsehood.  The  nation 
who  appropriated  this  King — foretold  by  Daniel,  Isaiah, 
and  other  Prophets,  as  breaking  in  pieces  and  consuming 
all  other  kingdoms — first  mistook,  and  next  perverted  their 
language.  At  the  period  of  his  advent  in  the  form  of  a  ser- 
vant, to  set  up  his  kingdom,  this  nation  were  in  subjection  to 
the  Romans — a  power  of  whose  yoke  they  had  long  been 
impatient.  They  eagerly  looked  therefore,  for  the  literal 
33 


258  SERMON  XVIII. 

accomplishment  of  this  prediction.  They  expected  that  ac- 
cording to  the  course  of  this  world,  the  first  essay  of  their 
Prince  would  be  the  assumption  of  the  government  which 
the  Romans  had  usurped  over  them,  and  the  demolition,  of 
course,  of  that  empire.  They  overlooked  those  descrip- 
tions of  their  King  which  were  couched  in  language  corres- 
ponding with  his  actual  appearance,  and  kept  in  their  hearts, 
the  more  lofty  and  elevated  images  of  the  poetic  pencil. 
They  forgot,  or  disregarded,  the  story  of  a  King  coming 
meek  and  lowly  ;  and  boasted  in  their  Messiah,  a  warrior 
glorious  in  his  apparel,  treading  down  the  Gentile  nations  in 
his  anger,  and  trampling  on  the  necks  of  only  their  oppres- 
sors. In  the  fulness  of  time  he  came  ;  but  it  was  not  to 
rescue  the  nation  from  their  bondage  to  the  Romans;  not  to 
gratify  the  unbounded  ambition  of  a  people  who  claimed  as 
a  right,  what  was  never  promised  them  even  as  an  act  of 
grace.  He  came — but -unattended  with  the  confused  noise 
of  the  battle  of  the  warrior,  and  a  retinue  of  the  thirty  thou- 
sand chariots  of  God.  He  came — but  it  was  to  blast  their 
unlicensed  hopes,  arid  to  shew  them  a  more  excellent  way. 
He  came — but  the  peace  of  kingdoms  was  uninterrupted, 
the  foundation  of  thrones  unmoved.  The  discovery  of  these 
truths  was  enough,  on  the  part  of  the  Jews,  to  excite  discon- 
tent ;  while  the  title  of  king  sufficed  to  kindle,  in  the  minions 
of  Csesar,  the  fire  of  jealousy.  While  from  one  side,  there- 
fore, was  heard  the  cry  of  Imposture,  from  the  other  inces- 
santly sounded  the  charge  of  Treason.  Before  the  tribu- 
nal either  of  Caiaphas  or  Pilate,  one  and  the  same  charge 
was  sufficient  to  fix  upon  him  the  guilt  of  both  these  crimes. 
He  assumed  the  title  of  King  of  the  Jews.  To  justify  him- 
self, (lor  he  could  not  deny)  it  was  necessary  to  examine  no 
witnesses  ;  for  before  one  court  stood  the  Prophets  and 
Apostles,  and  before  the  other,  the  miracles  of  Jesus  were 
present.     His  life  was  an  open  epistle,  read  and  known  of 


SERMON  XVIH.  259 

ull  men.  To  confound  all  his  enemies,  and  establish  all  his 
claims,  it  was  enough  to  answer — "  My  kingdom  is  not  of 
this  world."  He  answered  thus,  and  was  acquitted,  even  in 
the  judgment  of  the  friend  of  Caesar.  He  was  indeed  a 
king :  but  neither  did  his  title,  nor  the  authority  which  it 
covered,  at  all  endanger  the  civil  rights  of  any  people,  nor 
interfere  with  the  sovereignty  of  any  other  king. 

The  position  which  forms  the  whole  defence  of  Jesus 
Christ  before  the  bar  of  the  Roman  Governor,  is  given  us 
in  the  text.  It  is  interesting  to  us,  as  it  establishes  beyond 
controversy,  according  to  the  description  of  the  Prophets, 
his  claim  to  the  character  and  office  of  that  Messiah,  who 
began  to  be  spoken  of  at  the  first  as  the  desire  of  all  nations, 
and  to  whom  the  eyes  of  the  world  have  been  directed,  by 
the  messengers  of  God,  in  all  succeeding  ages.  •  It  is  inter- 
esting also,  as  it  leads  to  the  developement  of  the  nature  of 
that  kingdom,  in  the  privileges  and  blessings  of  which  he 
who  has  no  share,  is  lost  alike  to  dignity  and  happiness,  to 
present  virtue  and  to  future  glory. 

It  shall  be,  therefore,  our  first  object,  to  discover  the  grand 
peculiarities  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ ;  and  to  exhibit  those 
features  of  it,  which  distinguish  it  from  every  other  king- 
dom under  Heaven.  These  may  be  all  comprehended, 
perhaps,  in  the  foundation  or  origin,  the  nature,  the  object, 
the  means  by  which  it  is  effected,  and  the  duration  of  this 
kingdom. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  the  kingdom  of  Christ  is  distin- 
guished from  every  other  in  its  foundation.  From  no  other 
has  the  prospect  of  self-aggrandizement  been  excluded  :  in 
most  others  this  has  been  the  bottom  corner  stone.  But  the 
whole  basis  of  this  is  love.  Who  goeth  a  warfare  at  his 
own  charges  ?  Who  plants  a  colon}',  for  the  benefit  of  pos- 
terity not  his  own  ?  Who  ever  laid  the  foundation  of  an 
empire,  rescued  from  oppression  and  raised  into  a  nation,  a 


260  SERMON  XVIII. 

people  without  a  name,  and  eyed  no  other  recompense 
than  the  glory  of  doing1  good — the  exalted  pleasure  of  com- 
municating happiness  ?  That  history  of  nations  which  leads 
us  to  their  origin,  records  no  names,  nor  acts,  nor  purposes, 
which  do  not  shrink  from  a  comparison  with  his,  who, 
though  humbling  himself  to  behold  things  done  in  heaven, 
actually  came  down  upon  his  footstool  to  serve  mankind — 
to  give  the  universe  an  example  of  true  greatness  of  design 
and  action — to  found  a  kingdom  in  love.  The  monarch  of 
Babylon  revealed  the  secrets  of  the  founders  of  kingdoms, 
when  he  said,  "  for  the  honor  of  my  majesty."  All  the  illus- 
trious actions  of  men  of  any  other  kingdom  have  terminated 
on  themselves,  and  found  their  source  in  the  love  of  earthly 
grandeur.  But  was  it  for  this  the  God  of  Heaven  set  up  his 
kingdom?  Was  the  admiration  of  worms  an  object  with  him 
who  sits  above  the  cherubim,  who  makes  angels  with  the 
breath  of  his  mouth,  and  before  whom  all  the  inhabitants  of 
the  earth  are  as  grasshoppers  ?  Were  those  glories  to  which 
the  praises  of  the  perfect  cannot  add,  to  be  heightened,  by 
the  acknowledgments  of  the  guilty  and  the  vile?  Or  are  the 
perfections  of  the  immutable  God,  sustaining  no  loss  by  the 
defection  of  angels,  to  derive  some  hitherto  unknown  lustre 
from  the  concessions  of  men  ?  Who  will  venture  to  suppose 
that  it  was  either  to  retain,  increase,  or  support  the  honors 
of  his  throne,  that  he  has  employed  them  thus  ?  Who  ima- 
gines, that  had  they  not  been  made  known  by  their  peculiar 
manifestation  in  Christ,. they  should  not  have  equally  de- 
lighted him  ?  Or  will  any  man  say  that  he  who  is  never 
acted  upon  by  any  thing  exterior  to  himself,  acts  necessarily 
when  he  acts  at  all  ?  If  these  hypotheses  are  too  daring  or 
absurd,  admit  Jehovah's  claim  :  admit  that  in  whatever  par- 
ticular, in  whatever  degree,  his  kingdom  resembles  that  of 
men  of  this  world,  that  it  is  totally  unlike  every  other  in 
having  love,  disinterested  and  pure,  for  its  foundation.     A 


SERMON  XV1U.  261 

benevolence,  exerted  not  to  gain  accessions  to  his  honors 
who  is  independent  in  glory,  but  to  give  happiness  where 
happiness  is  wanted  ;  and  by  an  emanation  of  himself,  with- 
out loss,  privation,  or  increase,  to  fill  the  intellectual  world 
with  peace,  and  the  joys  of  virtue.  In  his  own  description 
"  God  is  love."  In  his  own  acts  he  has  taught  mankind, 
that  the  diffusion  of  his  goodness  is  his  glory,  the  most  pro- 
per and  the  most  pleasing  exercise  of  love.  Governed  by 
this,  he  lays  the  foundation  of  the  mediatorial  kingdom  when 
there  is  none  to  behold  and  shout  his  praise,  anticipates  with 
complacency  the  progress  of  the  kingdom,  and  continually 
testifies  to  the  world  his  pleasure  in  Zion's  king,  and  invites 
men  and  angels  to  share  with  him,  in  its  final  result,  the  most 
perfect  satisfaction.  For  this  shall  the  saints  bless  thee, 
Lord  God  almighty  ;  one  generation  to  another  shall  speak 
thy  praise,  to  make  known  unto  the  sons  of  men  thy  great- 
ness, and  the  glorious  majesty  of  thy  kingdom. 

2.  The  very  nature  of  this  kingdom,  as  may  be  seen 
from  what  has  been  said  of  its  origin,  distinguishes  it  from 
the  kingdoms  of  this  world.  The  glory  of  these  terminates, 
where  the  glory  of  Christ's  commences.  In  them  we  hear 
only  of  fleets  and  armies,  the  number  of  subjects,  extent  of 
territory,  plenitude  of  revenues,  the  encouragements  of  arts, 
improvements  in  policy,  and  the  interests  of  agriculture, 
commerce,  and  human  science.  They  all  regard  a  transi- 
tory glory,  and  form  but  an  imaginary,  and  that  a  momen- 
tary greatness.  But  the  nature  of  Christ's  kingdom  is  op- 
posed to  every  thing  earthly,  fluctuating,  and  of  exteriour 
grandeur.  It  is  altogether  intellectual,  and  spiritual  ;  com- 
eth  not,  of  course,  with  observation,  but  is  within  men.  The 
moral  world  is  the  only  subject  it  embraces,  and  moral 
good  the  utmost  bound  of  its  operation.  The  perfection  of 
the  rational  nature  is  the  only  art  it  cultivates  :  an  inter- 
change of  affections,  suited  to  its  relations  with  all  beings  in 


262  SERMON  XVIII. 

all  worlds,  its  only  commerce ;  and  the  divine  glory,  and 
the  general  happiness,  the  object  on  which  its  revenue  is 
employed.  The  interests  of  the  soul,  its  glory,  and  honor, 
and  peace — these  are  the  interests  it  engages  to  promote,  to 
enlarge,  and  to  defend.  Its  nature  is  learned  from  the  char- 
acter and  enterprizes  of  its  Head — a  Prince,  who,  though 
terrible  in  power,  devoted  it  primarily  to  the  interests-  of 
truth,  and  restrained  its  use  to  the  subjugation  of  the  ene- 
mies, and  to  the  correction  of  the  prejudices,  the  evil  pas- 
sions, and  volitions  of  mankind.  He  who  commanded  all 
the  elements,  who  governed  tempests  and  oceans,  whom  the 
spirits  cf  the  abyss  obeyed,  and  to  whom  even  the  angels  of 
God  cheerfully  gave  homage,  had  never  else  submitted  to  the 
exactions  of  the  "  little  brief  authority"  of  earthly  Potentates, 
nor  meekly  yielded  to  indignities  and  wrongs  imposed  by 
the  meanest  of  their  subjects.  Of  the  superior  nature  of  this 
kingdom,  as  well  as  of  its  unlikeness  to  every  other,  he  him- 
self gave  signal  proof,  not  only  in  the  extent  of  his  laws  and 
authority  over  the  conscience,  and  the  secret  thoughts  of  the 
heart,  but  in  that  example  of  deliberate  contempt  for  human 
empire,  and  all  the  glories  of  this  world,  which  he  uniformly 
exhibited  in  his  instructions  and  his  life  ;  and  particularly, 
under  the  insults  of  his' enemies,  the  vehement  intreaties  of 
his  friends,  and  the  strange  temptation  of  the  Devil. 

His  rewards  also,  invisible,  remote  from  human  observa- 
tion, principally  future;  and  all  the  motives  by  which  he 
sought  to  influence  mankind,  are  of  a  character  so  distinct, 
or  so  much  above  those  which  eye  had  seen,  or  ear  heard, 
or  the  heart  of  man  conceived,  as  to  render  them  in  our 
world  a  subject  of  derision.  The  nature  of  his  kingdom, 
therefore,  is  not  earthly,  but  as  diverse  from  that  of  the 
world,  as  it  is  singular  and  glorious  in  its  origin.  It  con- 
sumes and  destroys  all  other  kingdoms,  not  by  fire  and 
sword,  but  by  a  subjugation  of  those  passions  whose  indul- 


SERMON  XVIII.  26-J 

gence  makes  restraint  and  punishment  necessary  among 
men,  and  whose  dominion  alone  renders  the  pursuit  of  pow- 
er, the  business  of  courts,  the  machinations  of  statesmen,  and 
1  had  almost  said,  the  existence  of  human  governments,  prac- 
ticable. For  the  law  is  made  only  for  the  disobedient,  and  "  the 
powers  that  be"  must  have  been  unnecessary,  or  ordained 
for  some  other  end,  were  mankind  universally  free  from  such 
corruptions  as  render  them  incapable  of  self-government.  A 
kingdom,  therefore,  which,  without  violence  and  without  in- 
jury, consumes  every  other,  must  be  alike  different,  and  su- 
perior in  its  nature.  This  truth  will  be  still  more  obvious, 
if  we  consider — 

3.  Thirdly,  the  object  of  Christ's  kingdom.  "  He  did 
not  aspire  to  the  throne  of  Herod,  or  of  Caesar.  He  levied 
no  army,  and  assumed  no  state."  He  sought  not  honor 
from  men,  but  with  a  condescension  unknown  to  mortals,  re- 
tired before  those  who  pursued  only  to  exalt  him  ;  and  re- 
fused the  titles,  the  emoluments,  and  the  distinctions  of  every 
kind,  which  the  children  of  this  world  covet,  and  which  its 
princes  demand.  His  kingdom  came  not  with  observation  : 
though  resistless,  it  was  silent  in  its  progress ;  it  admits  not 
of  ostentation,  though  its  effects  cannot  be  hidden.  The  King 
of  Salem  aimed  not  at  his  own,  but  at  the  dignity  and  eleva- 
tion of  mankind — a  real  dignity  ;  an  elevation  not  of  the 
man,  but  of  the  character  of  the  man — a  dignity  never  to  be 
attained  but  in  a  restoration  to  the  divine  image,  found  in 
none  other  than  him  who  fulfils  the  duties  of  all  his  relations. 
He  aimed,  therefore,  at  the  reformation  of  the  world.  Never 
did  a  Prince  before  him,  conceive  a  design  like  this.  It 
was  too  pure,  too  extensive,  for  any  other  than  a  throne 
which  has  no  fellowship  with  iniquity,  no  private  or  partial 
ends  to  serve.  To  open  avenues  to  wealth,  to  irradiate 
the  brow  of  some  aspiring  family,  to  extend  dominion,  to 
aggrandize  one,  to  the   degradation  of  another  portion  of 


264  SERMON  XVIIi. 

mankind,  to  ascend  to  a  superiority  in  external  distinction 
over  their  contemporaries  ;  or,  at  least,  to  enjoy  the  privilege 
of  making  laws,  and  coercing  their  observance,  of  defining 
territory  and  protecting  it,  of  providing  a  temporary  enjoy- 
ment of  the  fruits  of  genius  and  industry,  and  the  means  of 
gratifying  appetite  and  passion  at  the  least  expense,  and  for 
the  longest  duration,  these  are  among  the  designs  of  men 
who  have  founded  kingdoms. — Designs,  which,  if  accom- 
plished, leave  man  a  slave,  and  practically  teach  him  to  be 
content  with  his  bondage,  to  seek  no  greater  elevation,  to 
wish  for  no  higher  good. — Designs,  many  of  which  are  ab- 
solutely mean  and  sordid,  and  incompatible  with  Christ's, 
and  the  noblest  of  which  he  has  taught  us  to  make  subordi- 
nate entirely,  to  the  interests  of  his  kingdom.  Who,  pre- 
vious to  his  teaching,  had  conceived  the  glorious  plan  of 
bringing  man  into  an  acquaintance  with  God,  and  resolving 
his  utmost  attainable  excellence  into  a  resemblance  of  him, 
and  a  subordination  of  every  thought,  emotion,  and  act,  to 
the  will  of  the  great  first  cause  ?  It  was  novel  as  it  is 
grand,  and  just  as  it  is  new.  Between  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world  and  that  of  the  Messiah,  there  is  a  correspondence 
only  in  titles  and  in  names. 

That  liberty  whose  attainment  or  maintainance,  is  pro- 
fessedly among  the  first  objects,  and  the  highest  privileges  of 
men,  has  In  the  one,  only  the  form  of  what  is  called  liberty 
in  the  other,  and  which  is  secured  beyond  the  possibility  of 
loss  to  all  the  subjects  of  Christ's  kingdom.  A  liberty 
worthy  of  the  distinction  demanded  for  it,  the  sacrifices  ne- 
cessary to  its  attainment :  a  liberty  consisting  in  the  emanci- 
pation of  the  soul — actually  translating  the  imprisoned  spirit 
from  the  bondage  of  corruption,  into  the  region  of  light, 
purity,  and  peace.  Under  the  dominion  of  many  tyrants, 
what  does  it  avail  me  that  my  eyes  see  the  sun,  that  my 
limbs  are  free  from  fetters,  or  that  my  fields  and  purse  se- 


SERMON  XVin.  265 

cured  from  plunder  ?  Yet  this  is  all  my  national  rulert 
pledge  or  proffer  me.  They  will  neither  deliver  me  from 
toy  pride,  nor  cure  me  of  my  discontent.  This  is  the  capital 
defect  of  that  freedom  for  which,  in  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world,  the  globe  is  convulsed ;  under  the  pretext  of  whose 
defence,  thousands  are  lured  into  the  chains  they  are  invited 
to  strike  off,  and  still  more  robbed  both  of  liberty  here,  and 
the  means  of  securing1  its  future  and  endless  possession. 
"My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world  ;  if  it  were,  then  would 
my  servants  fight,  that  I  should  not  be  delivered  to  the  Jews  j 
but  now  it  is  apparent  it  is  not  from  hence."  The  constitu- 
tions of  earthly  kingdoms,  however  framed,  free  not  even  the 
bodies  of  the  men  they  would  protect.  Their  authority, 
however  extensive,  reaches  not  the  verge  of  the  empire  of 
freedom.  But  the  kingdom  of  Christ  is  in  power.  By 
touching  the  very  spring  of  action,  he  liberates  the  whole 
man.  "The  spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,"  said  the  herald 
of  this  King ;  he  hath  sent  me  to  give  deliverance  to  the 
captive,  and  the  opening  of  the  prison  door  to  them  that  are 
bound;  to  remove  the  obstructions  of  the  mental  eye,  and 
give  the  understanding  wings  to  soar  into  the  region  of 
things  invisible ;  to  strike  off  the  chains  that  confine  it  to 
material  objects,  and  raise  it  to  the  comprehension'  of  things 
sublime  ;  to  expand  and  fill  the  large  capacity,  and  satisfy 
the  celestial  nature  with  appropriate  food.  Nay*  more,  for 
there  is  a  spirit  in  man  as  perverse,  as  the  undiscerning  in- 
tellect is  blind — a  will  as  fatal  to  enjoyment,  as  it  is  averse 
to  the  pursuit  of  objects  adapted  and  adequate  to  mental 
rest.  Where  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is,  there  only  is  liberty 
— a  disengagement  of  the  affections  from  objects,  by  whose 
attainment  man  cannot  be  gratified  so  as  to  thirst  no  more. 
But  what  power  can  correct  the  errors  of  a  heart  like  this, 
mistaking  evil  for  good,  and  pursuing  happiness  by  means 
which  have  no  influence  to  procure  it  ?  Human  authority 
34 


266  SERMON  XVIII. 

professes  not  to  reach  the  case,  nor  human  laws  to  provide  a 
remedy.  It  is  the  peculiar  glory  of  Messiah's  kingdom  that 
it  does  both.  His  operations  begin  here.  He  moulds  not 
his  laws  to  the  will,  but  conforms  the  will  to  the  laws.  This 
is  to  restore  in  man  the  image  of  his  Maker,  whose  laws  are 
a  transcript  of  his  perfections.  This  is  to  effect  a  restora- 
tion to  liberty,  such  alone  as  is  at  once  consistent  with  hu- 
man happiness  and  the  divine  government :  for  he  only  can 
be  gratified  in  all  his  wishes,  who  is  conformed  m  his  desires 
to  the  purposes  and  designs  of  him  who  inspects  and  gov- 
erns all.  This  is  a  dignified  freedom,  leaving  man  not  in- 
deed independent  of  the  will  of  one  being,  but  superior  to 
the  power,  caprice,  and  direction  of  every  other  in  the  Uni- 
verse— giving  one  Prince  authority  over  us,  instead  of  a 
thousand  ;  and  in  place  of  so  many  tyrants,  one  good  and 
universal  Lord,  whose  service,  demanded  alike  by  his  per- 
fections and  our  relations,  cannot  be  other  than  perfect  free- 
dom. Such  is  the  object  of  this  kingdom,  and  such  the  di- 
rection and  end  of  the  authority  of  its  Head. 

4.  The  means  by  which  this  object  is  effected,  are  also 
exclusively  its  own.  Craft  and  power,  or  artifice  superior  to 
strength,  are  the  wheels  by  which  other  kingdoms  are 
moved,  and  their  proposed  ends  accomplished,  The  sanc- 
tions of  their  laws,  are  founded  in  an  appeal  to  the  basest 
passions  of  their  subjects.  A  slavish  fear,  a  thirst  for  gold, 
a  lust  of  fame,  a  hope  of  power,  these  are  the  means  of  secu- 
ring the  laws'  observance  ;  and  a  suspension  of  the  means  of 
grossly  criminal  indulgence,  the  only  restraints  those  laws 
impose.  If  there  be  among  men  other  restraints,  or  other 
security,  they  arise  from  causes  beyond  their  control.  But 
in  the  kingdom  of  which  we  treat,  the  means  of  accomplish- 
ing the  end  proposed,  bear  no  resemblance  to  these.  The 
object  proposed  is  not  to  deter  from  evil  merely,  but  also  to 
excite  to  virtue,  to  subordination,    to  love  and   obedience  ; 


SERMON  XVIII.  2G7 

and  to  effect  this,  no  lust  is  excited  ;  vanity  is  never  flatter- 
ed; nor  pride,  ambition,  nor  a  mere  mercenary  hope,  pam- 
pered with  appropriate  nutriment.  The  excellence  of  the 
object  itself,  the  glory  of  the  divine  character  and  of  resem- 
bling it,  the  dignity  and  happiness  of  the  rational  nature, 
the  odiousness  of  ingratitude,  and  every  other  sin,  and  the 
dread  of  losing  forever  that  favor  which  is  life,  are  among 
the  motives  presented  to  the  soul  to  draw  it  to  its  God.  The 
appeal  is  made  to  the  real  interest  of  man,  taking  the  whole 
of  life  into  the  account;  and  therefore,  to  the  profit  of  all 
men,  for  the  interests  of  mankind,  when  weighed  in  these 
scales,  never  clash.  The  appeal  is  made  to  the  finest  feel- 
ings of  the  soul — to  affections  excellent  in  kind,  and  needing 
nothing  to  render  them  good  in  all  respects,  but  a  fit  object 
on  which  to  exercise  them  in  due  degree.  No  violence  is 
offered.  It  would  destroy  the  \ery  nature  of  this  kingdom, 
to  substitute  coercion  in  place  of  motive.  No  fraud  is  im- 
posed. It  is  a  kingdom  of  righteousness.  "Not  "by  might, 
nor  by  power,  but  by  my  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord."  By  the 
sweet  constraints  of  love,  by  the  disinterested  example  of  its 
Head,  by  the  diffusion  of  a  benevolence  high  in  its  origin  as 
the  throne  of  God,  and  broad  in  its  extent  as  the  world  of 
souls,  does  this  kingdom  rise,  advance  and  reign. 

In  the  kingdoms  of  men,  whatever  sacrifices  are  necessary 
are  usually  required  of  the  people — of  those  who  are  to  en- 
joy the  benefit  only  in  common  with  the  head,  and  oftener  to 
be  excluded  from  any  participation  in  such  enjoyment.  In 
the  kingdom  of  Christ,  when  an  offering  is  wanted,  he 
himself  becomes  the  victim.  The  loss  is  all  sustained,  the 
sacrifice  is  offered,  by  him  who  governs.  Though  rich,  he 
becomes  poor,  that  his  subjects,  through  his  poverty,  may 
be  enriched.  The  blood  of  its  sons,  and  the  treasures 
of  its  subjects,  flow  not  to  support  this  kingdom  ;  but 
he   who  framed,   himself  sustains    it.      All  the  necessary 


268  SERMON  XVTII. 

supplies  are  drawn  from  his  own  treasury,  and  his  in- 
heritance in  it  consists  of  his  subjects — "  The  Lord's  por- 
tion is  his  people."  Its  arms  are  truth,  and  righteousness, 
and  faith,  and  hope,  and  love.  In  every  contest  (and  con- 
test is  unavoidable)  the  King  provides  the  arms.  The  re- 
sources are  derived  in  no  case  from  his  subjects.  He  ever 
leads  the  way,  and  his  arm  ensures  the  victory.  He  enjoins 
no  humiliation,  nor  self-denial,  on  his  subjects,  in  which  he 
has  not  been  before  them  ;  nor  is  any  loss  to  be  sustained, 
any  danger  to  be  encountered,  any  enemy  to  be  overcome, 
in  which  he  has  not  led  the  way,  and  first  taught  by  exam- 
ple. And  after  all,  reversing  the  customs  of  this  world,  all 
the  solid  benefits  of  victory,  and  the  honors  of  a  triumph, 
accrue  to  his  subjects,  and  are  awarded,  not  merely  to  the 
chieftain,  but  his  followers.  There  is  an  efficacy  in  so  dis- 
interested an  example,  and  a  glory  in  means  like  these,  su- 
perior to  all  the  contrivances  of  mortals. 

5.  There  is  a  fifth  peculiarity,  in  the  structure  of  Christ's 
kingdom,  which  evinces  the  same  fact,  and  too  singular  to  be 
unnoticed — I  mean  the  adaptedness  of  its  laws  to  all  intelli- 
gencies,  and  its  progress  amoftg  all  people  ;  indicating  the 
hand  and  heart  of  none  other  than  the  universal  Father — 
the  governor  and  Lord  of  all.  Here  that  dissimilarity  of 
customs,  habits,  usages,  tastes,  which  prevent  the  assimila- 
tion of  men  of  different  nations,  and  which  renders  impracti- 
cable a  unity  of  law  and  government,  ceases  to  form  an  ob- 
stacle to  the  establishment  of  Christ's  kingdom.  He  collects 
subjects  out  of  all  nations,  and  makes  of  one  heart  and  one 
soul — subject  to  the  same  Prince  and  the  same  laws — men  of 
every  tribe,  and  kindred,  and  tongue.  At  once  they  speak 
the  same  language — the  language  of  the  htjart,  of  piety,  of 
benevolence,  of  heaven.  No  such  difficulties  as  bound  the 
extension  of  every  other  kingdom,  check  the  progress  of 
this.     In  its  infant  state  it  was  seen  advancing,  in  defiance  of 


SERMON  XVIII.  2$9 

every  species  of  opposition,  and  surmounting  obstacles 
which  have  presented  hitherto  an  insuperable  barrier,  to  the 
extension  of  the  kingdoms  of  this  world.  It  still  progresses 
in  the  same  manner,  circumscribed  by  no  lines  which  ca- 
price or  malignity,  nature  or  art,  have  drawn,  and  is  making- 
its  way  in  every  clime.  It  resists  principalities  and  powers, 
the  arms  of  human  policy  and  strength,  and  the  gates  of 
Hell  :  finds  voluntary  subjects  in  the  very  fortresses  of  its 
enemies,  and  breaks  in  pieces  and  consumes,  all  kingdoms 
hostile  to  its  interests.  Nor  is  there  any  thing  astonishing 
in  this,  on  the  supposition  that  his  heart  is  in  it  with  whom 
nothing  is  impossible,  the  empire  of  whose  Providence  is 
unbounded,  and  the  influence  of  whose  Spirit,  is  like  the 
wind,  unseen  in  its  causes,  and  like  the  fire,  irresistible  in 
its  power  over  every  thing  combustible.  This  Spirit  is  in  the 
gift  of  him  who  is  at  the  head  of  this  kingdom,  the  name  on 
whose  vesture  is  "  King  of  kings,  and  Lord  of  lords  :"  to 
whom  was  given  dominion,  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  that 
all  nations  should  serve  and  obey  him  ;  and  before  whom, 
the  dominion  of  the  beasts  is  taken  away,  and  their  lives  pro- 
longed but  for  a  season  and  time.  That  time  hastens  to  its 
close.  The  heathen  are  becoming  his  inheritance,  and  in 
the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth,  his  right  begins  to  be  ac- 
knowledged and  his  kingdom  known. 

6.  But,  in  the  last  place,  the  perpetuity  of  this  kingdom 
distinguishes  it  most  gloriously  from  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world.  And  this  thought  connects  the  first  and  last  heads 
of  this  discourse — in  the  very  origin  of  it,  the  means  of  its 
perpetuity  are  ensured.  Because  God  has  pleasure  in  it, 
it  will  stand  when  the  kingdoms  of  this  world,  founded  in 
lust  and  cemented  by  corruption,  shall  have  been  destroyed 
by  the  very  power  in  which  they  originated.  This  king- 
dom is  an  everlasting  kingdom,  and  to  the  dominion  of  its 
Head  there  shall  be  no  end.     Duration  is  every  thing.     It 


270  SERMON  XVIII. 

gives  increased  worth  and  consequence,  to  every  object 
which  is  in  itself  of  any  value.  Earthly  thrones,  by  reason 
of  the  materials  of  which  they  are  built,  tend  to  dissolution. 
The  principles  on  which  they  are  founded  are  defective. 
But  could  the  great  laws  of  nature  be  reversed,  and  these 
foundations  become  immoveable,  they  would  boast  one 
glory,  which  now  they  cannot  claim.  How  enviable  a  pecu- 
liarity, then,  has  that  kingdom,  which  is  both  perfect  in  its 
nature,  and  perpetual  in  its  duration  !  Which  shall  survive 
the  wreck  of  every  thing  man  has  sought  to  make  immortal, 
and  continue  to  increase  till  time  itself  shall  be  no  longer  ! 

In  mournful  succession,  the  kingdoms,  of  this  world  have 
lost  their  glory  and  their  names  ;  become  the  prey  of  ambi- 
tion, or  some  kindred  spoiler  ;  mingled  in  abasement  the 
Prince  and  the  subject,  and  sunk  into  the  gulph  of  a  name- 
less perdition.  Like  them,  all  kingdoms  built  on  the  same 
defective  foundation,  must  be  dissolved.  "The  Lord  of  Hosts 
has  purposed,  and  who  shall  disannul  it  ?"  The  kingdoms 
of  men  shall  have  an  end,  and  all  not  tributary  to  Messiah, 
shall  perish.  Thus  must  it  be  with  the  land  of  our  nativity, 
and  our  delights  :  thus  with  all  nations,  until  he  whose  right 
it  is,  shall  be  universally  hailed  as  King  ;  and  the  kingdoms 
of  this  world  become,  indivisibly,  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord 
and  of  his  Christ,  and  all  people  cheerfully  serve  and  obey 
him.  Already  to  some,  which  our  eyes  once  saw  proudly 
elevated,  and  fearing  no  sorrow,  the  prophetic  denunciation 
of  Messiah's  herald  has  been  verified — "  Hades  from  beneath 
is  moved  to  meet  thee  :  it  stirreth  up  the  dead  for  thee,  even 
all  the  chief  ones  of  the  earth;  and  hath  raised  from  their 
subterranean  thrones  the  departed  monarchs  of  the  earth. 
They  speak  with  the  voice  of  sympathy. — Art  thou  become 
like  one  of  us,  thy  pomp  brought  down  to  the  ground,  and 
the  noise  of  thy  viols  f  How  art  thou  cut  down  which  didst 
weaken  the  nations !"    But  the  kingdomof  Christ  has  an  im- 


SERMON  XVI1T.  271 

moveable  foundation.  It  stands  on  the  perfections  of  Jeho- 
vah. Its  perpetuity  is  secured  by  the  oath  and  the  nature 
of  God. 

Give  then,  who  will,  your  power  and  strength  unto  the 
Beast ;  God  shall  have  thee  in  derision,  and  the  angels  who 
look  on,  shall  hiss  at  thee.  "  The  people  of  the  saints  of 
the  most  high  God,"  shall  ultimately  possess  the  dominion 
under  the  whole  heaven.  For  who  is  God  save  the  Lord, 
who  has  sworn  it,  and  who  is  a  rock  save  our  God  ?  Thy 
throne,  O  God,  is  forever  and  ever  ;  thy  sceptre  is  a  right 
sceptre,  above  all  that  are  called  gods  ;  therefore  shalt  thou 
reign  till  all  enemies  are  subdued  beneath  thy  feet. 

In  the  application  of  this  subject,  most  of  the  discrimi- 
nating marks  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ  furnish  us  with  a  re- 
flection. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  since  this  kingdom  is  founded  in 
love,  they  must  be  totally  devoid  of  virtue  who  oppose  its 
establishment  in  everyplace.  Charity  is  the  bond  of  per- 
fectness — the  only  bond  which  can  permanently  unite  ra- 
tional minds.  It  is  the  only  affection,  which  ensures  a  just 
subordination  among  the  several  ranks  of  the  intelligent  uni- 
verse ;  which  cheerfully  allows  God  the  throne,  and  every 
inferior  spirit,  a  place  nearer  or  more  remote,  according  to 
his  approximation  to  the  divine  image.  Hence  love  is  the 
discriminating  mark  of  the  subjects  of  this  kingdom  ;  and 
enmity  to  God  and  man,  and  of  consequence  vice  and  infa- 
my, the  badge  of  those  who  are  opposed  to  the  complete 
and  universal  establishment  of  the  christian  empire. 

2.  As  the  nature  of  this  kingdom  is  spiritual  altogether, 
the  renovation  of  the  human  heart  is  essential  to  those  who 
would  share  in  the  benefits.  No  man  lives  and  sinneth  not. 
Sin  is  the  transgression  of  the  law  of  God.  To  restore  men 
to  the  obedience  of  this  law,  is  the  object  of  Christ.  Al- 
ready it  has  been  deduced  from  the  preceding  truths,  that  the 


272  SERMON  XVIII. 

opposers  of  this  kingdom  are  at  enmity  with  God.  The  uni- 
versal denial  of  this  fact  proves  man's  destitution  of  spiritual 
discernment ;  and  this  being  either  proved  or  acknowledged, 
the  necessity  of  such  a  transformation  to  wisdom,  life,  and 
love,  becomes  incontestable. 

3.  In  the  third  place,  as  the  means  by  which  the  kingdom 
of  Christ  is  advanced  are  also  spiritual,  its  interests  are 
never  promoted  by  a  conformity  to  this  world.  "The  wea- 
pons of  our  warfare  are  not  carnal."  The  spirit  of  persecu- 
tion in  all  its  forms,  and  the  principles,  and  maxims,  and 
practices  of  the  children  of  darkness,  can  never  be  advan- 
tageously applied,  or  have  any  other  than  an  injurious  ten- 
dency, in  this  kingdom.  Its  true  subjects  are  distinguished, 
therefore,  by  their  practical  opposition  to  the  world.  For 
the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  in  all  goodness,  and  righteousness, 
and  truth.  1  am  not  of  the  world,  said  its  founder,  of  him- 
self— and  of  his  disciples,  neither  are  they  of  the  world. 

4.  In  the  fourth  place,  as  this  kingdom  is  in  power,  de- 
fying all  opposition,  and  surmounting  all  obstacles  to  an  ex- 
tension to  every  land,  the  warfare  of  its  enemies  is  a  desper- 
ate warfare.  The  overthrow  of  this  kingdom  has  engaged, 
for  man}'  centuries,  the  combined  efforts  of  a  great  portion 
of  this  world,  and  of  all  the  world  below  ;  but  its  walls  are 
still  salvation.  Its  progress  is  silent,  but  it  is  irresistible.  It 
will  never  be  subverted,  for  God  is  at  its  foundation.  They 
fight  against  his  whole  family,  in  heaven  and  earth,  who 
practically  reverse  the  petition — ■"  Thy  kingdom  come." 

5.  Finally,  as  this  kingdom  is  in  its  duration  without 
end,  it  ought  to  be  a  subject  of  very  serious  inquiry  with 
every  man,  whether  he  has  an  interest  in  its  perpetuity. 
Will  it  add  to  your  stock  of  happiness,  that  this  kingdom 
stands  when  the  foundations  of  the  earth  tremble,  and  its 
pillars,  with  all  the  objects  which  contributed  to  your  enjoy- 
ment, are  removed  out  of  their  place  ?  '  Are  you  numbered 


SERMON  XVIII.  o73 

among  those  who,  when  its  glories  shall  be  consummated, 
will  make  the  arches  of  heaven  resound  with  the  song  of  tri- 
umph and  of  joy — "Now  is  come  salvation,  and  strength, 
and  the  kingdom  of  our  God,  and  the  power  of  his  Christ.'* 
Let  us  be  glad  and  rejoice,  for  the  marriage  of  the  Lamb  is 
come.  The  answer  to  this  enquiry,  you  will  find  in  the 
testimony  of  your  consciences  to  another  : — Is  your  kingdom 
of  this  world  ?  Say  where  is  your  conversation,  where  are 
your  treasures,  where  is  your  heart,  and  you  say  at  the 
same  time  that  the  perpetuity  of  this  kingdom  is  the  earnest 
«f  your  eternal  joy,  or  of  your  unavoidable  despair. 
35 


SERMON  XIX. 

ACQUIESCENCE    IN    THE    WILL    OF    GOD. 

Job,  xxxiv.  33. 
Should  it  be  according  to  thy  mind. 

M.  HE  government  of  God  is  a  great  deep.  He  maketh 
darkness  his  pavilion,  and  thick  clouds  of  the  sky.  He  doth 
his  pleasure  in  the  armies  of  heaven,  and  among  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  earth  ;  and  none  can  stay  his  hand.  Reason 
looks  on,  as  he  developes  in  his  providence  the  counsels  of 
his  unfrustrable  will,  and  is  confounded.  Philosophy 
stretches  over  the  mixed  scene  her  microscopic  eye,  and 
pronounces  it  the  effect  of  chance.  Religion  follows,  and 
presents  to  man  a  thread  which  conducts  him  through  the 
labyrinth  into  a  plan  of  perfect  wisdom  and  beauty.  She 
exhibits  Jehovah  at  the  head  of  all  might  and  dominion, 
guiding  and  controlling  every  movement  of  the  natural  and 
moral  world,  maintaining  the  same  agency  in  the  flight  and 
fall  of  the  sparrow,  and  in  the  rise  and  destruction  of  nations. 


SERMON  XIX. 


Xlo 


She  exhibits  something  of  his  natural  and  moral  perfection, 
in  the  passivity  and  action  of  all  his  creatures,  and  in  all  the 
vicissitudes  by  which  they  are  affected  ;  the  divine  hand  op- 
erating every  where  and  at  all  times,  to  the  same  ultimate 
benevolent  end,  for  "God  is  love." 

In  the  hands  of  such  a  being  more  absolutely  than  the 
clay  in  that  of  the  potter,  does  it  become  the  thing  formed 
to  say,  why  hast  thou  made  me  thus; — to  resist  his  will; — 
to  express,  or  even  to  feel  opposition  to  his  pleasure  ?  Shall 
a  worm  dictate  to  its  maker  ;  or  dare  to  murmur  when  he 
dictates  to  him'?  Must  the  earth  be  forsaken  for  thee;  or 
shall  the  rock  be  removed  out  of  its  place  ?  Should  God 
give  up  the  management  of  the  world,  to  stop  the  complaints 
of  a  man,  and  should  his  counsels — firmer  than  its  pillars — 
be  changed  to  gratify  the  humor,  and  support  the  consist- 
ency, of  the  little  creature  at  his  feet  ?  The  question  comes 
home  to  every  bosom,  for  there  such  arrogance  has  found  a 
covert.  Such  is  the  temper  of  the  unsanctified  :  and  good 
men,  when  unwatchful,  have  fallen  after  the  examples  of  un- 
belief. Wisdom  and  goodness  are  on  the  throne :  dominion 
and  might  are  with  him.  Should  any  thing,  then,  which 
can  become  the  subject  of  human  volition,  not  as  contrasted 
with  that  of  other  creatures,  but  with  that  of  the  Most  High, 
"beaccording  to  thy  mind  ?"  Turn  thine  eye  inward,  and  ex- 
amine thy  present  temper  :  backward,  and  recollect  the  past. 
Hast  thou  never  quarrelled  with  the  constitution  of  God  ? 
Has  he  duly  proportioned  the  sea  and  the  land  ;  the  gifts  of 
his  providence,  and  the  measures  of  his  grace  ?  Have  the 
revolutions  of  the  seasons,  and  of  the  heritages  of  men,  been 
ordered  to  thy  liking  ?  Are  the  laws  of  matter  and  of  mind 
wisely  fixed  ;  and  are  endowments  and  pleasures  properly 
distributed  ?  Was  the  orginal  condition  of  man  well  de- 
vised ?  Are  his  present  state  and  future  destiny,  fitly  sus- 
pended upon  conditions  under  the  control  of  another's  will? 


2T6  SERMON  XIX. 

Ought  man,  in  nothing  to  be  independent  of  his  Maker  ? 
Ought  not  thy  will,  though  at  variance  with  that  of  God, 
sometimes  to  prevail  f  Much  do  we  mistake  the  inspired 
description  of  the  human  heart,  if  it  strive  not  thus;  and 
equally,  the  character  of  God,  if  he  do  not  visit  for  these 
things,  if  his  soul  be  not  avenged  on  such  a  nature  as  this. 
Come  then,  and  let  us  reason  together  ;  and  frame  our  ways 
and  doings  into  compliance  with  the  law  and  government  of 
God. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  we  are  men,  and  have  only  derived 
rights  ;  we  should  therefore  never  prescribe  to  God.  No 
derived  power  can,  with  any  semblance  of  truth,  claim  the 
right  of  giving  law  to  itself;  and,  without  regard  to  the 
will  of  its  superior,  fix  its  own  destiny.  God  has  made  all 
things  for  himself.  Creatures  of  every  order  are  his  prop- 
erty, and  have  no  more  claim  to  dictate  an  article  of  their 
constitution,  than  the  axe,  the  saw,  or  the  hammer,  to  lift 
itself  against  the  artificer  who  handles  it  for  the  purpose, 
and  in  the  manner,  which  pleases  him.  The  prerogative  of 
God  cannot  be  questioned,  to  give  law  to  every  nature,  and 
to  do  what  he  will  with  his  own.  Of  himself,  and  of  the 
several  orders  of  the  Universe,  his  is  the  whole  disposal ; 
and  from  the  very  nature  of  God,  it  is  a  contradiction  to 
admit  his  being,  and  question  the  propriety  of  his  works  or 
bis  designs.  The  intellectual  weakness  of  a  created  nature, 
is,  of  itself,  a  prohibition  of  rising  against  him  in  judgment. 
Of  the  relation  and  tendency  of  events,  man  knows  nothing ; 
but  is  indebted  to  his  Maker,  no  less  for  the  knowledge  of 
what  is  right,  than  for  his  power  to  be.  His  capacity,  com- 
pared with  that  of  God,  is  nothing.  The  capacity  of  man 
is  small,  compared  with  that  of  other  intelligent  creatures  ; 
and  small  as  it  is,  is  not  filled.  He  is  not  qualified  to  judge 
at  all,  but  by  the  revelation  of  God,  over  whom,  in  the  very 
act  of  judging  him,  he  exalts  himself.     And  if  he  say  he  have 


SERMON  XIX.  J7  7 

derived  from  him  the  means  of  deciding  on  the  propriety  of 
his  acts,  and  yet  is  dissatisfied  with  his  Sovereign's  conduct; 
he  does  but  affirm  that  Jehovah  has  condemned  himself. 
Man  sees  not  far,  even  in  the  race  of  time  ;  and  whence  his 
prescience,  to  declare  what  is  to  be  accounted  good  at  the 
end  of  the  course,  and  in  relation  to  eternity  ?  Who  passes 
sentence  upon  actions  detached  from  their  causes,  and  conse- 
quences ;  and  without  even  an  apprehension  of  what  is  to 
be  their  issue  ?  Did  such  a  procedure  in  Jacob,  on  the  loss 
of  Joseph,  establish  its  wisdom  ?  Was  it,  as  he  decided,  the 
most  adverse  event  of  his  pilgrimage?  That  train  of  bless- 
ings which  we  see  to  have  been  suspended  on  it,  to  himself, 
to  nations,  to  the  world,  and  to  all  Messiah's  kingdom, 
should  have  taught  us  to  be  still  till  the  mystery  of  God  is 
finished.  Is  man  unqualified,  when  the  hand  of  God  is  in  it,  to 
pronounce  judgment  on  an  event  so  simple  as  the  selling  of 
a  boy,  and  does  he  condemn  for  its  weakness,  or  question 
for  its  want  of  rectitude,  a  plan  which  comprehends  the 
whole  counsel  of  God  ?  He  has  forgotten  that  he  was  of 
yesterday,  and  born  like  the  wild  ass'  colt. 

2.  But  were  it  otherwise  ;  were  it  admitted  that  he  has 
a  right  to  be  consulted  in  the  work  of  God,  you  will  observe, 
secondly,  that  every  man  might  challenge  an  equal  voice  in 
council.  And  to  what  an  indefinable  fraction  would  this  re- 
duce the  portion  of  individual  influence?  What  is  one  man 
in  a  universe  of  minds  ?  And  what  were  the  government  of 
the  world,  were  each  to  be  consulted  in  the  determination  of 
events,  which  are  ultimately  to  affect  the  destiny  of  all  ?  No 
individual  stands  or  falls  alone  ;  and  though  his  particular 
interest  be  involved,  God,  in  all  his  operations,  has  regard  to 
the  concerns  of  his  whole  kingdom.  How  immense  the 
number  and  variety  of  interests  at  stake  ;  and  what  move- 
ment of  the  great  First  Cause,  can  be  said  to  have  no  bear- 
ing upon  them  all  ?     What  event  is  so  small,  as  to  contribute 


278  SERMON  XIX. 

nothing,  directly  nor  indirectly,  to  that  grand  issue  in  which 
every  creature,  and  the  great  God  himself,  is  interested  ? 
Shall  a  single  mind  then,  which  is  to  the  whole  but  as  the 
mote  to  the  globe,  indulge  a  wish  to  prescribe  to  God ;  to 
settle  a  question,  or  guide  in  a  decision,  which  has  not  been 
submitted  to  its  judgment  ?  Does  such  a  mind  deem  itself 
sufficient,  by  its  own  powers,  to  take  the  responsibility  of 
forming  the  character,  and  fixing  the  destiny,  of  men  for 
eternity  ?  Who,  on  the  contrary,  finding  himself  occupying 
but  a  point  in  this  unbounded  vast,  and  among  myriads  of 
spirits  perhaps  the  weakest,  and  most  insignificant  of  them 
all,  who  would  dare,  in  the  presence  of  God,  announce  his 
will,  and  set  oft'  his  pleasure,  against  the  known  decision  of 
Jehovah  ?  To  the  doctrines,  the  commands,  the  providence 
of  God,  who  ventures  to  oppose  his  own  will?  Such  con- 
duct were  madness,  were  it  not  sin — 

3.  For,  in  the  third  place,  were  there  but  one  man  on 
the  earth  j  were  the  inhabitants  of  other  worlds  unaffected 
by  the  events  of  this ;  did  God  himself  lay  aside  every  other 
consideration,  and  live  and  act  only  for  that  man,  and  for 
the  gratification  otitis  will,  he  would  destroy  him  at  his  own. 
request.  For  who  knoweth  what  is  good  for  him  ?  Who  of 
all  the  race,  was  ever  happy  by  means  of  his  own  prescrip- 
tion ?  Whose  spontaneous  designs  and  hopes,  were  not  first 
reversed  by  the  action  of  the  Almighty,  before  he  understood 
the  nature  of  happiness,  or  the  way  of  its  attainment  ?  Who 
would  save  his  life,  did  his  existence  depend  on  his  own 
measures  ?  The  mariners  who  shipped  with  Paul,  were  pre- 
vented by  dire  necessity,  from  executing  their  only  hopeful 
scheme  of  deliverance  from  a  watery  grave.  It  was  by  op- 
posing their  wills,  and  counteracting  their  ,wisdom,  God 
enabled  them  all  to  get  safe  to  land.  The  wife  of  Jacob 
perished,  by  the  very  means  she  deemed  essential  to  her  tem- 
poral enjoyment.    Israel  loathed  the  food  provided  for  them  j 


SERMON  XIX.  279 

God  listened  to  their  complaints,  in  anger  gratified  their  de- 
sires, and  by  the  sustenance  they  demanded  they  died.  So 
the  cross,  of  Christ,  a  stumbling  block,  to  the  Jew,  and  folly 
to  the  Greek,  becomes  the  occasion  of  the  second  death, 
though  it  be  nothing  less  than  the  power  and  wisdom  of  God 
unto  salvation.  Who  can  look  upon  these  examples,  and 
suppose  himself  wiser  than  all  who  have  preceded  him  ;  and 
possessing  the  same  nature,  and  subject  to  the  same  defect 
of  foresight,  imagine  himself  capable  of  securing  a  happier 
result,  while  disposed  like  them,  to  select  and  prescribe,  in- 
stead of  submitting  to  the  appointments,  and  following  the 
prescriptions  of  the  only  wise  God  ?  Who  is  not  prepared 
to  admit,  that  his  only  safety,  as  well  as  wisdom,  and  right- 
eousness, and  glory,  results  from  humble  confidence  in  God; 
of  whom  nothing  is  to  be  affirmed,  the  converse,  of  which  is 
not  to  be  found  in  man  !  To  his  omniscience,  we  oppose  ig- 
norance :  to  infinite  benevolence,  selfishness  :  to  his  wisdom, 
folly  :  to  truth,  deceitfulness  of  heart:  to  goodness,  desper- 
ate wickedness.  We  are  impotent  to  think  any  thing  as  of 
ourselves,  and  to  will  and  to  do,  in  a  strength  opposed  to 
his,  is  but  to  array  briers  and  thorns  in  battle  with  devour- 
ing fire  ;  while  to  act  in  concurrence  with  Jehovah,  is  to 
move  with  everlasting  strength — with  a  might  which  calls 
into  being  at  will,  the  things  which  are  not,  and  annihilates, 
or  converts  to  his  purpose,  things  that  are.  Self-willed  and 
arrogant  spirit !  think  of  these  things  ;  and  under  the  im- 
pression of  their  divine  origin,  answer  the  enquiry,  "  should 
it  be  according  to  thy  mind  V  Will  you  resist  or  acquiesce 
in  the  government,  will  you  oppose  or  yield  obedience  to  the 
gospel,  of  God  ? 

4.  But,  in  the  fourth  place,  it  ill  becomes  him  who  so 
resists,  and  so  opposes,  be  his  condition  and  his  prospects  as 
miserable  as  they  may,  to  complain  of  them,  or  of  him  who 
orders  them,    because    he   is   the    creature    of  corruption. 


28G  SERMON  XIX. 

Could  the  arbiter  of  the  world  proffer  him  any  condition  his 
heart  desires,  a  just  sense  of  his  deserts  would  constrain  him 
to  decline  the  favor.  No  man  should  even  wish  to  be  happy, 
but  upon  condition  of  his  acquiescing  in  that  moral  constitu- 
tion which  the  perfections  of  God,  merciful  and  gracious, 
have  established  in  his  sight.  Were  such  a  desire  lawful, 
God  could  not  have  forbidden  by  revelation,  any  such  ex- 
pectation. It  is  forbidden  :  we  cannot,  therefore,  make  any 
such  proposal.  He  will  appoint  the  sinner  his  lot.  He  has 
purposed  and  who  shall  disannul  it  ?  His  language  is,  "  my 
counsel  shall  stand,  and  I  will  do  all  my  pleasure."  The 
decision  is  made,  and  cannot  be  reversed.  It  is  written  in 
the  words  of  that  book  to  which  no  man  may  add  on  pain 
of  death,  from  which  none  may  take  away  but  on  the  same 
forfeit  of  eternal  life. 

Men  talk  of  the  law  of  nature — of  finding  implanted  in 
every  creature,  a  desire  of  happiness.  But  are  the  law  of 
nature  and  the  written  law,  at  variance  ?  Or  is  the  law  of 
self-preservation  so  at  war  with  the  evangelical  law,  as  to 
render  the  violation  of  the  one,  indispensable  to  the  obedi- 
ence of  the  other  ?  Who  does  not  perceive,  that  this  is  to 
claim  for  God  an  inglorious  kingdom — a  kingdom  divided 
against  itself — and  therefore,  by  the  decision  of  Jesus  Christ, 
a  kingdom  that  cannot  stand  ?  God  has  implanted  no  desire 
in  the  human  heart,  which  necessarily  tends  to  undermine 
the  foundations  of  the  kingdom  of  grace.  Yet  such  is  the 
desire  of  happiness  founded  in  opposition  to  his  character: 
and  law,  and  government.  Whoever  cherishes  hostile  de- 
signs against  his  throne,  can  be  made  happy  only  by  its  sub- 
version. So  says  every  Prophet  of  God  ;  so  said  Jesus 
Christ,  in  the  terms  of  the  gospel.  Submission  to  God  is 
the  only  possible  hope.  The  happiness  of  no  other  than  the 
submissive  soul,  is  agreeable  to  the  divine  will.  To  encour- 
age the  expectation,  or  desire  of  happiness,  in  him  whose 


SERMON  XIX.  281 

heart  is  set  against  the  heavens,  is  to  encourage  licentious- 
ness. It  is  conniving  at  the  criminal  project  of  evading  the 
penalty  of  the  law,  and  defeating  the  grand  design  of  the 
christian  redemption.  In  sight  of  this  object,  can  a  man 
wish  to  retain  his  wickedness  and  suffer  nothing  for  it,  and 
still  be  obedient  to  a  law  written  on  his  heart  by  the  finger 
of  God  ?  All  the  desires  of  a  heart  struggling  for  inde- 
pendence, are  opposed  alike  to  every  law  which  God  ac- 
knowledges to  be  of  his  enactment.  Does  he  excite  desires 
or  hopes,  which  he  has  solemnly  pledged  himself  never  to 
gratify?  Or  are  those  desires  lawful,  which  are  indulged  in 
defiance  of  the  threatenings  of  his  word  ?  Is  the  spirit  of  the 
Lord  in  this  ?  Are  these  his  doings  ?  How  then  does  it  ap- 
pear, that  they  who  walk  in  pride  are  ever  to  be  abased  ? 
How  does  it  appear  that  the  heavens  do  rule  ?  IX  that  heart 
be  qualified  for  true  enjoyment ;  if  the  moral  constitution  of 
God  have  rendered  its  happiness  compatible  with  a  state  of 
alienation  from  him,  and  insubordination  to  his  government, 
how  shall  it  be  made  to  appear  that  the  Redeemer  has  loved 
righteousness  and  hated  iniquity,  and  for  this  is  made  pre- 
eminently glad  ?  No — under  the  extremest  misery  which  is 
entailed  upon  a  heart  opposed  to  God,  he  who  has  any  sense 
of  what  is  just,  any  conception  of  moral  fitness,  will  either 
cease  to  desire  exemption  from  suffering,  or  submit  himself 
to  God.  Humble  yourself,  therefore,  under  the  mighty 
hand  of  God,  or  lie  down  in  thy  shame,  and  let  confusion 
cover  thee. 

I  am  aware  that  no  bad  man  is  satisfied  with  the  establish- 
ment of  an  inseparable  connexion  between  sin  and  suffering  ; 
but  to  every  such  man,  I  present  the  fact  as  being  agreeable 
to  God,  and  ask  of  his  conscience — "  should  it  be  according 
to  thy  mind  ?" — Shall  he  that  hatelh  right,  govern  ;  and  the 
voluntary  servant  of  sin,  by  complaining  of  its  penalty,  re- 
buke his  sovereign  ?  The  fire  shall  cease  to  burn  upon  every 
36 


282  SERMON  XIX. 

rebel  who  throws  down  his  arms,  and  no  miracle  shall  be 
withholden  which  is  necessary  to  the  encouragement  of  vir- 
tue ;  but  never  will  God  acknowledge  holy  or  laudable,  any 
desire  or  action  of  a  heart,  which  is  found  fighting  against 
himself.  "  He  resisteth  the  proud  forever — but  giveth  grace 
unto  the  humble."  He  has  sent  forth  his  edict  to  mankind, 
to  hush  every  rebellious  passion  :  he  has  given  command  to 
the  world,  to  conquer  eveiy  perverse  affection.  "  Be  still 
and  know  that  I  am  God."  "  I  will  be  exalted  among  the 
heathen.  I  will  be  exalted  in  the  earth."  Every  creature 
shall  cease  his  opposition  to  Jehovah  and  be  melted,  or  feel 
the  thunder  of  his  power,  and  be  broken  in  pieces,  as  the 
vessel  of  the  potter  is  shivered. 

Let  us  see  how  the  wise  man  of  the  East  met  this  ques- 
tion, when,  instead  of  the  young  man  who  proposed  it  to  his 
consideration,  Jehovah  was  perceived  to  be  the  inquirer: 
when  he  saw  himself  to  have  been  arrayed  against  the  Al- 
mighty, and  to  have  instructed  and  reproved  him.  "Then, 
Job  answered  the  Lord  and  said  ;  I  know  that  thou  canst  do 
every  thing,  and  that  no  thought  can  be  withholden  from 
thee  :  therefore  ha^e  I  uttered  that  I  understood  not,  things 
too  wonderful,  which  I  knew  not.  Behold  1  am  vile,  what 
shall  I  answer  thee  ?  Once  have  I  spoken,  but  I  will  not  re- 
peat it ;  yea  twice,  but  I  will  proceed  no  further.  I  have 
heard  of  thee  by  thehearing  of  the  ear,  but  now  mine  eye 
seeth  thee;  wherefore  I  abhor  myself,  and  repent  in  dust 
and  ashes."  Look  upon  the  elevation  from  which  he  had 
fallen  ;  attend  a  moment  to  his  example,  and  learn  the  duty 
in  every  condition  and  prospect  of  this  life,  of  unqualified 
submission.  God  had  given  him  extensive  possessions,  and 
an  understanding  heart.  He  was  prosperous,  and  he  was 
great ;  and  at  Ms  wisdom,  the  wise  asked  counsel.  To  him 
the  mourner  repaired  for  comfort,  the  beggar  for  life.  He 
was  to  all  intents  a  king,  without  his  title  or  investiture.  He 


SERMON  XIX.  2S3 

had  children  like  a  flock,  and  an  afl'ectionate  heart  to  appre- 
ciate the  blessing — a  wife,  and  she  was  as  his  own  soul.   He 
had  health  to  enjoy  them  all,  and  friends   to  double  the  en- 
joyment, by  sharing  with  him  his  happiness.     Over   all,    he 
had  knowledge  of  the  true  God,  an^  bad  seen  by  faith  some- 
thing of  the  glory  of  his  Redeemer.     Thus  blessed,  he   said 
unguardedly,  but  as  a  man,  "I  shall  die  in  my  nest."     Sud- 
denly the  heavens  are  dark,  and  the   earth    fails    under   his 
feet.     His  immense  possessions  are  ravished  from   him   by 
freebooters.     The  fire  of  heaven  has  scathed  his  habitations, 
and  left  him  childless.      The  nerves  strung  with  vigor,   and 
the  muscles  clothed  in  beauty,   are  made   naked  and  loath- 
some by  disease.     The  wise,  who  asked  counsel  at  his  door, 
reproach,  and  the  beggar,  who  there  received  his  bread,  de- 
rides him.     The  mourner  whom  he  comforted,  has  no  prayer 
in  his  calamity.     The  friends  who  loved  his  table,  charge  his 
misfortunes  to  hypocrisy;  and  the  dogs  of  Idumea,  who  for 
their  vices  shunned  his  venerable  presence,  insult  the  suffer- 
ings which  might  disarm   enmity  itself.     Even   the  wife   of 
his  bosom  deserts  him ;  and  over  all,  the  God  in  whom    he 
thought  he  had  taken  refuge,  leaves  him  to  his  enemies  !  Are 
you  prepared  to  hear  him  criminate  the  providence  of  the 
Most  High  ?     Shall  his  attachment  to   the  world  'lead   him 
back  to  its  idols  for  a  comforter  ?      Must    not  his    passions 
blind  his   understanding,   and   drive   him  to  despair  ?     O  ! 
learn  the  power,  and  seek  the  comforts,  of  religion.      All   is 
well  with  the  man  who  fears  God — Naked  came    I    out    of 
my  mother  earth,    and  naked  shall  I  return  thither. — -"  The 
Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken  away,   and  blessed    be 
the  name  of  the  Lord." 

Bring  hither  the  blasphemer,  who  charges  his  wretched- 
ness on  the  want  of  goodness  in  God — the  miser,  whose  un- 
godliness is  gain — the  votary  of  pleasure,  the  child  of  am- 
bition, the  philosopher,  and  the  fatalist — and  let  them  unite 


284  SERMON  XIX. 

in  the  acknowledgment  that  he  who  feareth  God  shall  come 
forth  of  them  all.  Tyranny  may  inflame  indignation ;  a 
weak  judgment  may  disproportion  punishment  to  crime  ;  an 
imbecile  Prince,  however  bent  on  rectitude,  may  bear  the 
sword  in  vain ;  but  wisdom  and  might  are  with  God,  and  all 
his  judgments  are  done  in  truth.  He  is  "a  just  God  and  a 
Saviour ;"  and  he  expects  us  in  every  condition  to  say — 
"  Shall  not  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth  do  right?"  Let  his 
dread  fall  on  us,  and  his  excellency  make  us  afraid. 

1.  From  this  view  of  the  subject,  let  us  learn  our  obliga- 
tions to  rejoice,  that  men  and  all  their  works,  are  in  the 
hands  of  God — learn,  I  mean,  to  treat  it  as  a  practical  truth, 
and  cordially  submit  both  to  the  precepts  and  the  provi- 
dence of  God.  Pharaoh  could  admit  the  Lord  to  be  right- 
eous, and  he  and  his  people  wicked,  and  be  unsubmissive 
still.  'Tis  death  thus  to  admit,  and  decline  the  duty  we  ac- 
knowledge. The  duty  of  submission  is  an  extensive  duty. 
A  brute  may  suffer,  and  be  passive  under  the  reign  of  God. 
Man,  as  he  is  fitted,  is  to  be  active  under  his  reign,  and 
having  followed  out  the  precept,  to  submit  the  issue  in  the 
sentiment  of  the  best  model  of  piety — Father,  thy  will  be 
done.  Then  without  shame,  remorse,  or  disappointment,  he 
may  meet  his  fate  in  peace,  and  triumph  in  the  song  of  the 
holy — "The  Lord  God  Omnipotent  reigneth." 

The  christian  is  interested  in  this  truth.  It  is  his  God, 
whose  love  is  alike  tender,  efficient,  and  unchangeable  :  and 
his  good  and  that  of  his  child,  is  identified  with  the  darkest 
event,  and  the  highest  honors  of  his  throne.  Take  from  him 
what  he  will,  his  bark  is  secure,  and  he  will  rise  on  the 
swelling  billows  toward  the  object  of  his  chief  desire,  and 
ride  at  length,  by  the  promise  of  the  Eternal,  into  his  des- 
tined haven.  Through  every  cloud  of  the  mysterious  way 
in  which  he  passes,  he  hears  behind  him  the  voice  of  en- 
couragement— Your  light  affliction  is  but  for  a  moment;  it 


SERMON  XIX.  2bo 

worketh  out  for  you  a  far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight 
of  glory.  Every  thing  is  adjusted  to  the  accomplishment  of 
this  end,  in  behalf  of  him  that  believeth,  and  ever  ministers 
to  the  encouragement  of  patience  and  hope.  Why  say  you, 
desponding  soul !  "  Did  I  but  know  that  God  were  my 
friend,  I  could,  from  respect  to  his  will,  do  all  thingaand  en- 
dure ?"  Do  it  then,  without  the  assurance,  and  the  point  is 
gained.     Do  it,  and  you  no  longer  dictate,  but  obey. 

2.  I  ask  the  wicked,  in  the  last  place,  to  compare  the 
way  of  his  steps  with  the  christian  course,  mark  their  respec- 
tive issues,  and  turn  at  the  reproof  of  wisdom.  Is  there 
another  alternative  i  Will  he  neither  be  satisfied  with  sub- 
jection to  the  curse  of  the  law,  nor  submit  to  the  terms  by 
which  alone  his  Ruler  proposes  to  give  him  freedom  ?  I 
ask  him,  in  view  of  the  several  considerations  laid  before 
him,  if  a  cordial  and  unreserved  submission  to  one  or  other 
of  these  courses  and  issues,  is  not  the  only  course  of  feeling 
and  action  in  which  a  man  can  respect  himself  7  Who  would 
ask  the  approbation  both  of  himself,  and  the  enemy  against 
whom  he  contends ?  Who  insist  on  the  possibility  that  con- 
tending armies  both  may  conquer,  both  be  vanquished  ? 
What  king,  going  to  make  war,  consulteth  not  whether  he 
be  able  to  meet  the  enemy  ;  and  in  defect  of  skill  and  power, 
desireth  not  conditions  of  peace  ?  Open  now  thine  ear, 
champion  of  rebellion  !  to  the  voice  of  God,  which,  either 
in  whispers  or  in  thunder,  is  ever  sending  abroad,  to  correct 
thine  error,  the  seasonable  admonition — "  Wo  !  to  him  that 
striveth  with  his  Maker  !" 


SERMON  XX.* 


-«♦©©•*•* 


THE    VALUE    OF    LIFE. 


JL  HE  Chief  Magistrate  of  this  Commonwealth  has  sum- 
moned us  together,  to  recognize  the  hand  of  a  merciful  Prov- 
idence in  the  peace  and  plenty,  health,  and  happiness,  -enjoyed 
by  its  citizens  during  the  past  year.  He  encourages  us  to 
recount  our  common  favors,  and  devoutly  to  ascribe  honor 
and  glory  to  their  Author — our  supreme  Benefactor.  Among 
these  favors,  he  particularly  commends  to  our  notice,  ar 
competent  supply  of  the  fruits  of  the  earth,  general  health, 
the  prosperity  of  our  husbandmen,  manufacturers,  fishermen, 
and  mariners  ;  and  the  advantages  of  commercial  and  friend- 
ly intercourse  with  other  nations.  He  calls  upon  us  to  bless 
the  wisdom  which  inspires  the  love  of  science,  and  a  dispo- 
sition to  cherish  its  schools  ;  and  bids  us  acknowledge  divine 
revelation  as  the  basis  of  this  life's  best  enjoyments,  and  the 


*This  was  the  author's  last  public  performance.  He  appeared  pale, 
feeble,  emaciated  ;  his  bodily  frame  hardly  supporting  the  activity  of  his 
spirit.  But  bespoke  like  a  man,  conscious  of  the  value 'of  life  in  a  benev- 
olent point  of  view,  though  about  to  leave  it.  The  sermon  produced  a  deep 
impression.  He  seemed  like  one,  lifting  up  his  head  from  the  grave  to  tell 
his  people  what  it  is,  that  makes   life  precious  in  the  estimation  of  a  dying 

christian. 

- 


SERMON  XX. 

only  source  of  knowledge  and  hope  of  enjoyment,  in  the  life 
to  come.  To  the  praises  of  God  in  such  extent,  he  recom- 
mends that  we  add  earnest  prayer  for  the  prosperity  of  our 
country  in  every  thing  relating  to  the  temporal  benefit  of  so- 
ciety ;  penitent  lamentation  for  the  prevalence  of  crimes 
which  degrade  man's  moral  character  ;  and  supplication  for 
that  spirit  of  reformation,  which  shall  render  us  meet  for  the 
enjoyment  of  the  inestimable  civil,  social,  and  religious 
blessings  which  have  been  transmitted  to  us  from  our  ances- 
tors, to  be  conveyed  unimpaired  to  our  posterity.  The  proc- 
lamations of  the  Governors  of  two  neighbouring  States,  en- 
large the  list  of  mercies  to  be  acknowledged,  and  of  the  topics 
of  praise,  by  adding  to  every  common  and  temporal  bless- 
ing, those  of  "the  gift  of  God's  Son,  and  salvation  through 
him  ;"  and  "  his  abundant  mercy  to  Zion,  in  her  prosperity 
and  enlargement,  through  the  effusions  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  the  success  of  the  efforts  of  that  active  benevolence  which 
characterizes  the  age."  To  the  confessions  already  propos- 
ed they  would  have  added,  the  "  humble  acknowledgment  of 
our  failure  to  requite  the  Lord,  according  to  his  benefits, 
with  love  and  devoted  service,  and  to  honor  him  with  our 
substance,  and  the  first  fruits  of  all  our  increase  ; — the  ac- 
knowledgment of  our  violations  of  his  holy  law,  and  abuses 
of  his  blessed  gospel."  To  the  petitions  and  intercessions  of 
the  people  also,  they  recommend,  '  that  we  implore  pardon 
for  Christ's  sake,  and  conversion  from  all  our  iniquities, 
that  we  may  lead  quiet  and  peaceable  lives  in  all  godliness 
and  honesty;  that  all  our  Rulers  may  be  guided  constantly 
by  divine  wisdom,  and  all  this  growing  nation  favored  with 
the  glorious  gospel  of  the  blessed  God  ; — that  religion  and 
science  may  more  extensively  pervade  our  own  land  ;  op- 
pression, superstition,  idolatry,  scepticism,  and  all  irreligion 
and  vice,  be  banished  from  every  other,  and  all  the  king- 
doms of  this  world  be  subjected  to  the  righteous  dominion. 


288  SERMON  XX. 

and  restored  to  the   holy  and  everlasting  kingdom  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.'     (Parris  and  Butler.) 

But  while  these,  without  exception,  are  proper  subjects  of 
thanksgiving  and  confession,  supplication  and  praise,  I  am 
constrained  to  turn  for  my  text,  to  a  chief  magistrate  of  an- 
cient time,  under  the  immediate  guidance  of  God  ;  and  I  find 
him  comorehending  all  his  obligations,  in  the  preservation  of 
his  life  ;  (this  in  fact  involves  even  the  privilege  of  praising 
God  in  his  sanctuary,  and  in  the  firmament  of  his  power)  and 
thus,  on  the  ground  of  personal  favors,  erecting  a  monument 
of  fervent  and  perpetual  thanksgiving  to  God,  so  long  as  he 
has  any  being — 

Isaiah,  xxxviii.  18,  19,  20. 

The  grave  cannot  praise  thee  ;  death  cannot  celebrate  thee  ;  they 
that  go  doivn  into  the  pit  cannot  hope  for  thy  truth  :  the  living, 
the  living,  he  shall  praise  thee  as  I  do  this  day  ;  the  father  to 
the  children  shall  make  known  thy  truth.  The  Lord  was  ready 
to  save  me ;  therefore  we  ivill  sing  my  songs  to  the  stringed 
instruments  all  the  days  of  our  life  in  the  house  of  the  Lord.  w 

HEZEKIAH,  the  author  of  this  animated  hymn,  and  of 
the  holy  resolution  which  it  proclaims,  was  among  the  most 
illustrious  Princes  who  ever  graced  the  Jewish  throne.  He 
was  alike  distinguished  for  political  wisdom  and  religious 
zeal.  His  brief  biography,  should  be  inscribed  on  every 
brow  that  wears  a  crown,  and  humble  every  breast  covered 
with  the  badges  of  civil  or  ecclesiastical  authority,  not  emu- 
lous of  his  distinction.  It  was  his  excellence,  that  in  all  the 
extent  of  his  influence  he  enforced  the  laws  of  God,  by  mak- 
ing all  his  edicts  subservient  to  that  righteousness  which  ex- 
alteth  a  nation,  and  subversive  of  those  principles  and  habits 
which  are  a   reproach  to   any  people.     "  Thus,"  says  the 


SERMON  XX.  289 

historian,  "  did  he  throughout  all  Judah,  and  wrought  that 
which  was  good,  and  right  and  truth,  before  the  Lord  his 
God.  And  in  every  work  that  he  began  in  ihe  service  of 
the  house  of  God,  and  in  the  law,  and  in  the  commandments, 
to  seek  his  God,  he  did  it  with  all  his  heart  and  prospered." 
Blessed  art  thou  O!  land,  when  thy  governors  are  descend- 
ed of  nobility  like  this  ;  and  blessed  he  to  whose  name  shall 
be  awarded,  by  such  a  judge,  a  testimony  so  honorable,  an 
influence  so  efficient  and  so  salutary. 

But  we  are  not  come  hither  to-day  to  eulogize  man,  liv- 
ing or  dead,  of  ancient  or  of  modern  time.  Enough  of  this 
has  already  occupied  the  ingenious  labors  of  the  civilian  in 
the  year  that  is  past.  It  is  our  privilege  to  leave  the  depart- 
ed chief  magistrates  of  the  American  people  to  an  undisturb- 
ed grave,  and  to  refer,  the  decision  of  their  ultimate  destiny 
to  a  more  competent  tribunal.  From  all  creatures,  whatever 
may  have  been  their  earthly  distinction,  we  are,  on  this  an- 
niversary, to  transfer  our  eulogies  to  God — the  Author  and 
Benefactor  of  all.  And  whence  could  we  have  selected  a 
better  model  of  our  duty,  than  is  placed  before  us  in  the 
public  commemoration  by  Hezekiah  and  his  people,  of  the 
mercy  of  the  Lord  in  having  given  us  our  life  for  a  prey? 
To  us,  whoever  else  is  deprived  of  the  residue  of  his  years 
and  gone  to  the  gates  of  the  grave,  to  us  remains  the  obliga- 
tion and  the  privilege  of  offering  the  praises  which  the  grave 
never  renders,  which  death  never  celebrates  ;  and  to  diffuse 
among  contemporaries,  and  transmit  to  the  generation  which 
is  to  come,  the  truth  which  is  hid  from  them  who  have  gone 
down  into  the  pit.  Let  us  mingle  then,  with  the  praises 
which  Hezekiah  perpetuated  through  so  many  ages  in  the 
Jewish  sanctuary,  the  same  holy  incense  in  this  court  of  the 
Gentiles — Thou,  O  Lord,  hast  been  ready  to  save,  therefore 
will  we  sing  our  song  to  the  stringed  instruments  all  the  days 
of  our  life,  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  jorever.  The  sentiment 
37 


290  SERMON  XX. 

adopted  from  this  model,  and  now  to  be  enforced,  is — that 

IN  THE  PRESERVATION  OF  EVERY  VALUABLE  LIFE,  WE  HAVE 
GROUND  FOR  HOLT  GRATULATION  AND  THANKSGIVING.        And 

what  life  is  not  thus  valuable  ?  Not  excepting  even  the 
basest  of  men  ;  since  on  its  continuance  is  suspended  the 
salvation  of  the  soul :  and,  in  case  of  the  christian  house- 
holder, the  welfare  of  a  family,  or  the  means  of  blessing  the 
commonwealth,  and  a  common  country  ;  or  the  nobler  and 
more  extended  privilege,  of  contributing  to  the  advancement 
and  the  glory  of  the  kingdom  of  God  our  Saviour.  And  for 
the  preservation  of  a  life  of  such  immense  importance,  per- 
sonal or  public,  and  rendered  still  more  so  by  the  condition 
of  the  age  in  which  it  is  prolonged,  every  one  of  us  is  to  feel 
his  obligations,  and  to  give  account  to  God. 

1.  In  the  first  place,  to  many  of  us  God  has  lengthened 
out  a  life,  on  whose  continuance  is  suspended  the  means  of 
personal  piety,  and  the  acquisition  of  the  salvation  of 
the  soul.  How  many  hundreds  do  I  address,  who,  but 
for  the  distinction  which  the  sovereignty  of  God  alone 
has  made  between  them  and  those  who  have  gone  to 
the  congregation  of  the  dead,  had  lost  the  possibility 
of  a  happy  immortality  ?  Who  in  the  last,  as  well  as  in  all 
preceding  years,  have  forfeited  anew  both  the  blessings  and 
the  offers  of  salvation,  and  cut  themselves  off,  by  neglecting 
the  provisions  of  redeeming  mercy,  from  even  the  hope  of 
praising  God  forever?  Tell  me  not,  then,  you  are  under  no 
obligation  to  praise  your  Preserver  for  this,  because  man's 
life  is  so  much  a  vapor ;  and  the  love  of  it  so  much  decried 
in  our  sacred  ethics ;  and  because  to  live  simply,  or  to  live 
only  for  present  enjoyment,  is  confessedly  a  wretched  portion. 
Life  is  so  much  the  more  invaluable  to  him,  for  whom  to  die 
would  be  no  gain.  And  by  as  much  as  life  is  worthless  in 
view  of  its  brevity  and  vanity  and  labor,  by  so  much  is  its 
prolongation  of  infinite  importance  to  tlie  sinner^  and  worthy 


SERMON  XX.  201 

the  expression  of  his  public,  religious,  and  perpetual  praise. 
Because,  in  this  is  involved  the  renewed  favor  of  every  thing 
like  privilege  to  the  wretched  ;  of  every   means   ever  to  be 
enjoyed  of  rendering  possible  to  him   the   pursuit  of  glory, 
and  honor,  and  immortality,  by  which   alone  everlasting  life 
is  attained.     To  him  it  is  of  equal  value  with  the  virtue  and 
the  heaven,  whose  acquisition  are  suspended  upon  the  proper 
use  of  that  fragment  of  life  which  remains.     And  even  to  the 
christian,  it  is  as  important  as  the  perfection  of  his  personal 
piety  ;  and  the  honor  and  bliss  of  contributing  to  the  further- 
ance of  Christianity  :  and  this,  you  will  remark,  is  the  grand 
object  for  which  the  existence  of  the  world  itself  is  prolong- 
ed.    And  it  is  only  in  these  lights  we  can  either  hope,  or  de- 
sire, to  impress  your  hearts  with  a  weighty  sense  of  obliga- 
tion to  God,  for  preservation  from  the  pit  where*  you  could 
not  hope  for  his  truth  ;  nor  lor  the  opportunity   to   make   it 
known  unto  j7our  children.     Remaining  in   bondage  to  his 
lusts,  and  feeling  only  a  selfish  interest  in  the  prolongation 
of  life,  the  sinner,  I  am  aware,  does  not  make   any  just  esti- 
mate of  the  favor  done  him  in  this  respite  ;  and  is  of  course 
totally  dead  to  this  sentiment  of  the  monarch  of  Judea,  and 
men  of  kindred  minds.     Yet  even  he,  however  unwilling   to 
yield  it,  cannot  fail  to  perceive  his  obligations    to    give    his 
whole  heart  to  the  praises  of  his  Preserver.     Yes,   to    the 
wicked  life  is  more  eminently  a  peculiar  favor,  than   to  the 
righteous.     They  have  a  far  deeper  personal  interest   in    its 
continuance  ;  far  higher  obligations  are  theirs,  to  the  com- 
passion and  favor  of  God  for  this  benefit.      Think  of  this  in 
your  estimate  of  this  day's  privilege,   or  you  will  know  no- 
thing of  the  blessing  freely  given  you  of  God,  nor  render  to 
him  on  this  occasion,  any  thing  of  the  devout  adoration  and 
gratitude  which  you  are  come  up  hither  to  express. 

The  grief  of  He/.ekiah  at  the   delivery   of  the   Prophet's 
message — "  Set  thine  house  in  order,  for  thou  shalt  die" — 


292  SERMON  XX. 

did  not  arise  from  a  mere  love  of  life  ;  nor  the  love  of  the 
world  ;  nor  a  dread  of  death,  and  its  momentous  issues.  It 
originated  in  the  profound  and  affecting  thought,  that  unless 
a  respite  from  this  sentence  were  granted  him,  the  welfare  of 
his  family,  the  prosperity  of  the  nation,  the  peace  and  sta- 
bility of  the  church,  were  to  derive  from  his  prayers,  and 
example,  and  labors,  nothing  more  forever.  And  it  was  be- 
cause for  him  to  live,  was  to  glorify  God  on  earth,  and  to  be 
of  some  benefit  to  his  great  moral  family,  that  his  benevolent 
heart  deprecated  the  prospect  of  an  early  removal  to  the 
land  of  darkness;  by  which  all  its  liberal  devices,  and  holy 
purposes,  should  have  been  unavoidably  left  unaccomplish- 
ed. And  because  he  is  the  model  of  our  devotional  senti- 
ments, and  songs  of  gratitude,  this  is  to  be  the — 

2.  Second  part  of  our  illustration.  Consider  then,  how 
much  of  the  welfare  of  your  families  depends  upon  the  Provi- 
dence, for  which  the  living  alone,  of  all  the  heads  of  our 
households,  are  urged  to  praise  God,  as  the  righteous  do 
this  day.  And  let  us  not  fail  to  observe,  through  all  the 
following  illustrations,  that  in  our  age,  life  is  of  more  value 
than  it  ever  was  before  ;  and  that  in  its  preservation,  we  havje 
so  much  the  greater  cause  for  gratitude  and  praise  to  its  Pre- 
server, as  our  facilities,  both  for  superior  personal  piety,  and 
public  usefulness,  are  more  numerous  and  extensive.  An 
ordinary  citizen  now  in  our  country,  if  he  have  Hezekiah's 
heart,  may  be  more  a  blessing,  and  more  blessed,  than  that 
monarch  :  may  diffuse  light  and  joy  more  widely  ;  and  bless 
mankind,  both  good  and  evil,  more  richly  ;  and  make  his 
salutar}'  influence  to  be  felt  through  a  larger  mass  of  the 
generations  to  come.  And  for  the  obvious  reason,  that  the 
dispensation  of  grace  under  which  we  live  is  more  enlarged. 
No  longer  is  it  confined  to  a  single  nation  ;  no  longer  is  the 
good  proposed  to  man,  through  the  efforts  of  human  benev- 
olence,  a   contemptible   offering  in  the  eye  of  the  nations  ; 


SERMON  XX. 

nor  are  those  who  are  the  objects  of  these  efforts  universalis 
a  gainsaying- and  incorrigible  people.  Ethiopia  stretches  out 
her  hands  unto  God  ;  the  Jew  begins  to  despair  of  a  Mes- 
siah yet  to  come  ;  the  Isles  wait  for  his  law,  "  and  all  na- 
tions sigh  to  be  renewed."  By  means  of  the  progress  of 
knowledge  and  commercial  intercourse,  of  science  and  just 
sentiments  on  the  subject  of  hitman  rights,  the  growth  of  free 
institutions  and  the  increase  of  wealth  and  religious  influ- 
ence, distant  nations  are  brought  together,  intermixed,  and 
taught  to  feel  more  the  sensibilities  of  a  common  nature,  and 
a  national  brotherhood  ;  and  to  see  that  the  fullness  of  lime 
is  advancing,  for  a  gathering  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  globe 
to  a  common  standard  under  the  banner  of  Messiah  the 
Prince. 

It  is  in  such  an  age,  Parents  !  jour  children,  and  those  of 
another  and  another  generation  will  live  ;  and  under  the 
auspices  of  this  reign  of  grace  will  their  sentiments  and  ha- 
bits be  formed ;  and  their  influence,  civil,  moral,  and  reli- 
gious, receive  its  direction  ;  and  by  these  means  will  their 
destiny  be  fixed  for  eternity.  And  what  use  you  will  make 
of  the  high  privilege  God  has  given  you,  for  forming  their 
characters,  directing  their  influence,  and  fixing  their  destiny 
under  such  facilities,  your  remaining  conversation  in  the 
world  is  to  testify.  Think  of  the  difference,  which  only  half 
a  century  has  made  in  the  means  of  useful  and  sacred 
knowledge.  Many  a  parent  who  hears  me,  can,  from  per- 
sonal knowledge  make  the  comparison;  and  thence  estimate 
the  superiority  of  the  present  means  over  former  advantages. 
JVow  instead  of  only  Dilworth's  Spelling  book  in  the  schools; 
and  Watts'  Catechism  in  the  nursery ;  and  Janeway's  Token 
for  children  in  the  history  of  God's  wonders  in  the  church  ; 
you  have  the  elements  of  every  science  to  put  into  the  hands 
of  children,  brought  down  to  the  level  of  their  capacities  ; 
and  compendious  histories  of  the  whole  religious  world,  in 


294  SERMON  XX. 

the  most   alluring'   garb,  to  elevate  and  enrich  their  minds  ; 
and  all  the  means  necessary  to  make  them  as  ripe  in  knowl- 
edge and  understanding,  in  the  greenness  of  youth,  as  were 
their  ancestors   generally,    at  the  end  of  their  inquiries.     A 
few  devoted  mothers  then,  favored  with  peculiar  and  extra- 
ordinary teachers,  could  by  personal  assiduity,  do  something 
for  the  elevation  of  their  offspring.     But  how  much  did  even 
these,  labor  alone  ?    Well  qualified   helpers,  in  our  common 
and  sabbath  schools ;  in   every  department  of  agriculture ; 
and  the  mechanic  as   well  as  the   liberal   arts  ;  in  literature 
too  and  religion,  are   within  you?-  reabh,  to   train  the  rising 
generation  to  all  that   is  valuable  in  knowledge   of  the   life 
that  now  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come.     Who  then,  if  "he 
wishes  for  the  benefit  of  his  family  and  of  his  lineage,   and 
would  see  them  emulating  excellence  in  a  secular  profession, 
or   set  in  order  for  eternal  life,  can  reflect  how  little  his  ar- 
dor of  feeling   and  enterprize   for  their  improvement,  have 
kept  pace  with  his  growing  facilities  for  accomplishing  so 
much  good  to  his  household,  and  not  thank  God  for  sparing 
him  a  fragment  of  life  to   fill   up    in   zealous  efforts  for  re- 
deeming the  loss,  and  in  holy  achievements  for  their  good  ?, 
Who  will   think  it   a  small   thing,   to   have  lived   one  year 
longer  for  such  a  purpose  ?  Who  will  not  surpass  the  devout 
Hezekiah,  in  pious    recollections   and  thanksgivings,  when, 
with   the  remembrance  of  the  personal  favor  done  him,  he 
associates  the  fact,  that  for   the  sake  of  the  offspring  of  his 
body,  God  has  renewed  the  opportunities  of  the  fathers  and 
mothers  in  Israel  thus   to  make  known   to   the  children   his 
truth  ?    Ah !   mourning   households,  they    that   have    gone 
down  to  the  pit,  cannot  hope  for  this  ! 

3.  But,  in  the  third  place,  the  opportunities  of  fulfilling 
the  duties  of  our  citizenship,  and  blessing  the  whole  Com- 
monwealth, are  comprehended  in  the  benefit  now  under  con- 
sideration.    This  every  man  can  do,  and   is  bound  to   do, 


SERMON  XX.  295 

whatever  be  his  station,  both  by  his  oath,  and  the  laws  of  his 
country  and  bis  God  ;  and  this  he  can  do,  only  by  obeying 
her  laws."  Long  ago  was  it  proclaimed  from  the  bench,  by 
one  of  those  precious  few  of  the  Judges  of  our  country,  who 
give  ample  evidence  that  they  both  fear  God  and  regard 
man,  that  "Every  wicked  man  is  an  enemy  to  his  country, 
because  he  breaks  her  laws ;  and  spreads  the  contagion  of 
vice  around  him  ;  and  because  his  conduct  has  a  direct  ten- 
dency to  bring  down  the  vengeance  of  heaven  on  his  coun- 
try. There  is  no  other  way  of  discharging  our  duty  to  it, 
but  by  yielding  obedience  to  all  her  laws  :  not  this,  or  that, 
but  every  law.  Some  dislike  one,  and  some  another ;  and 
there  are  some  so  bad  they  hate  all  law.  One  is  averse  to 
the  law  of  the  sabbath,  and  therefore  he  breaks  it;  another, 
to  that  which  forbids  swearing,  and  therefore  he  breaks  it  ; 
a  third  complains  of  the  law  that  restrains  diversions  on  Sun- 
day, and  therefore  he  breaks  it.  What  is  to  become  of  a 
country,  where  the  laws  are  thus  insulted  and  violated  by 
every  man  at  his  pleasure  ?  Christianity  stands  or  falls  with 
the  sabbath  ;  and  if  it  does  fall,  will  pull  down  with  it  the 
pillars  of  government,  and  bury  our  country  in  ruins.  That 
man  who  obeys  only  those  laws  which  please  his  humor,  and 
deliberately  violates  those  he  disapproves,  I  venture  to  as- 
sert, has  not  a  single  drop  of  patriotic  blood  in  his  veins,  or 
benevolence  in  his  heart.  Possessing  a  particle  of  cither,  he 
would  cheerfully  acquiesce  in  every  law  that  has  any  ten- 
dency to  promote  the  general  good.  Has  the  law  said,  thou 
shalt  do  no  unnecessary  work,  nor  practise  any  diversion  on 
the  sabbath  ?  He  that  offends  in  these  particulars,  and 
against  both  heaven  and  earth,  is  a  bad  citizen,  and  a  bad 
man.  He  can  have  no  better  pretension  to  the  character  of 
a  good  citizen,  than  the  robber  on  the  high-way  ;  though 
there  be  a  difference  in  the  nature  and  degree  of  these 
crimes."     Such  is  the  bold  language  of  truth  and  integrity, 


29G  SERMON  XX. 

addressed  from  the  bench  to  a  jury  of  our  country.  For 
once,  then,  the  language  of  the  Pulpit  and  of  the  Forum  has 
spoken  the  same  thing,  in  regard  to  the  duties  and  the  char- 
acter of  the  citizen.  Enjoying  the  protection  and  blessing 
of  government,  he  is  bound  by  every  lawful  means,  instead 
of  violating,  to  support  the  laws.  He  has  no  claim  to  live 
to  himself,  or  even  to  his  family,  to  the  injury  of  his  coun- 
try. In  a  representative  government  like  ours,  his  respon- 
sibility to  the  community  for  the  character  of  his  rulers  is 
direct  and  mighty.  The  qualifications  of  magistrates  are 
fixed  by  the  Almighty  ;  and  it  is  not  by  any  liberty  which 
man  can  give,  that  they  may  be  unfixed  or  dispensed  with 
by  the  act  of  the  citizen.  The  character  of  the  laws,  and  of 
those  whose  duty  it  is  to  execute  them,  are  in  all  the  extent 
of  his  suffrage  and  his  influence,  with  him  ;  and  he  will  be 
called  to  give  account  of  them  to  God.  The  source  whence 
the  power  emanates  is  the  responsible  agent ;  which,  in  this 
case,  is  the  will  of  the  people.  The  morals  and  happiness, 
the  good  or  injury  of  the  community,  rest  in  a  measure  on 
the  agency  of  every  citizen.  The  crimes  which  our  Chief 
Magistrate  calls  on  us  to  lament  as  degrading  the  moral 
character  of  6ur  community,  are  therefore  our  crimes,  if  we 
have  neglected  any  of  the  duties  of  good  citizens  by  which 
they  were  to  be  prevented. 

What  a  privilege  is  ours  then,  of  exerting  all  our  influence 
to  diminish  them,  and  make  that  community  virtuous  and 
happy.  How  valuable  the  continuance  of  a  life  on  which 
depends,  in  any  degree,  the  decision  of  the  question,  whether 
the  vile  shall  be  restrained  and  the  virtuous  protected  ;  and 
all  that  is  just  in  principle,  and  good  in  morals,  be  maintain- 
ed or  subverted.  Whether  the  institutions  on  which  the  dig- 
nity and  glory,  as  well  as  safety,  and  even  existence  of  social 
order  depends,  shall  be  honored  or  trodden  down.  Whether 
profaneness,  debauchery,  gaming,  intemperancej  fraud^sab- 


SERMON  XX.  297 

bath-breaking,  and  the  other  common  vices  of  the  time, 
shall  meet  the  law's  rebuke,  and  the  public  frown  ;  or  find 
countenance  in  the  unresisting  and  pusillanimous  silence  and 
inaction  of  the  citizens.  Every  man  cannot  say  that  the  vices 
of  the  community  shall  be  reformed  or  restrained  ;  but  he 
can  say,  that  nothing  shall  be  left  undone,  which  it  is  his 
duty  to  do,  to  produce  that  most  desirable  and  salutary  im- 
provement. But  when  death  has  terminated  your  citizen- 
ship, your  whole  activity  and  influence  in  the  decision  is  lost 
to  the  state.  Had  you  gone  to  your  fathers,  your  memory 
would  perhaps  ere  now  have  been  forgotten,  and  your  in- 
fluence unfelt,  and  neither  your  advice,  counsel,  nor  effective 
agency  by  example,  had  given  this  year  a  verdict  for  God 
and  your  country.  You  would  have  furthered  no  longer 
the  cause  of  virtuous  liberty  ;  nor  the  peace,  stability,  and 
happiness  of  society,  against  the  ever  busy  influence  of  un- 
principled and  immoral  men.  In  the  cutting  off  of  your 
days,  a  blow  had  been  given  to  the  authority  of  the  right- 
eous, in  whose  rule  the  people  rejoice ;  and  in  the  grave  of 
a  truly  virtuous  citizen,  had  been  buried  the  one  talent  or 
the  ten,  for  the  want  of  whose  proprietor  the  righteous 
always  mourn.  Every  man  who  loves  his  country  may, 
without  immodesty,  perceive  and  feel  this  ;  and  therefore  be 
thankful  for  the  preservation  of  a  life  which  is  to  be  devoted 
to  the  public  welfare.  The  loss  of  every  such  citizen,  how- 
ever humble  his  name  or  station,  is  a  public  loss  :  the  pres- 
ervation of  his  example  and  influence,  a  cause  of  public  grat- 
itude, because  it  is  a  public  benefit — and  because  the  coun- 
try has  but  few  such  faithful  citizens  to  spare  or  lose.  What 
would  have  been  the  fate  of  Israel,  in  the  event  of  Hezekiah's 
exit  in  the  midst  of  his  years  ?  And  what  better  than  bands 
of  tow,  are  the  sinews  of  any  government  committed  to 
raw,  unstable,  immoral,  and  popularity-seeking  young  men  ; 
or,  what  is  worse,  men  grown  hoary  in  devising  schemes  of 
38 


298  SERMON  XX. 

a  corrupt  policy,  to  supplant  the  statutes  and  maxims  of  the 
wisdom  which  is  from  above.  Let  those  maxims  take  deep 
hold  of  our  sensibilities  and  our  deeds.  For  if  the  founda- 
tions be  destroyed,  what  can  the  righteous  do  ?  And  if  the 
breaking  down  the  bulwarks  reared  with  the  religious  insti- 
tutions, and  principles,  and  moral  habits  of  the  fathers  of 
New  England,  is  to  be  the  effect  of  the  prolongation  of  the 
lives  of  this  generation,  better  (will  they  who  come  after  us 
be  constrained  to  say)  better  for  them  had  we  been  swept 
away  together  with  the  besom  of  destruction,  and  perished, 
like  the  profligates,  in  the  flood.  When  these  bulwarks  are 
destroyed,  no  good  man  will  hesitate  to  feel,  and  to  lament, 
that  the  glory  is  departed. 

4.  But  a  higher  and  more  extensive  privilege,  is  involved 
in  the  benefit  of  a  life  prolonged  in  circumstances  like  ours  : 
It  is  that  of  directly  advancing  the  kingdom  of  Christ  on 
earth,  to  its  consummation.  In  regard  to  the  facilities  af- 
forded us  for  this,  we  have  only  to  say,  that  the  benevolence 
which  has  ever  existed  in  the  breasts  of  God's  people,  is  now 
furnished,  like  that  of  the  seraphim  above,  with  many  wings, 
in  the  associations  which  serve  as  pioneers,  or  depots,  or 
messengers  of  christian  philanthropy,  to  the  world  of  indi- 
gence surrounding  us  at  home,  or  the  wilds  of  ignorance  and 
wretchedness  abroad.  Of  such  associations,  the  society 
which  to-day  reminds  us  of  our  privilege,  is  one  of  the  many 
which  exemplifies  this  truth.  The  poor  we  have  indeed  al- 
ways with  us,  and  when  we  will  we  may  do  them  good.  But 
how  vast  the  difference  between  searching  out  the  cause  we 
know  not,  at  the  expense  of  personal  and  daily  assiduity, 
and  supplying  the  subjects  of  poverty  and  distress,  with  the 
means  of  healing  their  sicknesses,  and  softening  the  asperity  of 
a  solitary  and  unconsoled  death-bed  ;  and  making  others  the 
almoners  of  both  our  worldly  and  spiritual  bounty — the  in- 
struments of  ministering  a  meagre  pittance  to  the  necessities 


SERMON  XX.  299 

of  a  hundred  distinct  fellow-beings,  as  they  respectively  re- 
quire, at  hundreds  of  timely  separate  visitations  !  By  sim- 
ilar associations,  we  carry  to  the  rapidly  peopling  forests  of 
our  own  country,  to  the  Islands  of  every  sea,  to  the  Pagan 
world,  and  the  climes  of  every  shore  unchristian  and  unciv- 
ilized, the  benefits  of  knowledge,  and  the  institutions  of  that 
pure  and  undefiled  religion,  which  are  alike  the  basis  of  in- 
tellectual and  moral  freedom. 

"For  this  end  was  I  born,  and  for  this  end  came  I  into 
the  world,  to  bear  witness  to  the  truth."  Error,  scientific. 
or  religious,  cannot  be  a  permanent  basis  of  individual  or 
national  felicity.  In  relation  to  this  object,  it  is  but  "  the 
fabric  of  a  vision."  The  end  of  Christ,  is,  by  divine  au- 
thority, to  be  the  grand  aim  and  end  of  all  men.  None,  by 
permission  of  the  heavens,  lives  or  dies  unto  himself;  and 
for  whatever  object  other  than  to  do  good,  any  one  lives, 
however  successful,  he  will  die  poor  and  blind  and  wretched. 
No  ultimate  good  is  attainable  by  any  means  other  than 
those  proposed  in  the  gospel  ;  and  these  are  the  communi- 
cative spirit,  and  the  benevolent  temper  of  its  Author.  These 
therefore  being  of  the  very  essence  of  holiness,  are  of  the 
nature  of  privileges.  It  is,  of  consequence,  among  the  great- 
est of  blessings  to  have  that  life  extended,  in  which  alone  the 
great  family  of  man  are  to  be  benefitted  by  our  voluntary 
agency.  Man  cannot  practise  a  greater  deceit  upon  his 
heart,  than  in  holding  tenaciously  the  maxim,  that  he  di- 
minishes the  amount  of  his  own  enjoyment  in  the  same  pro- 
portion that  he  ministers,  from  all  his  resources,  to  the  real 
good  of  others.  It  is  a  sentiment  contradicted  by  the  whole 
economy  of  God,  who  surely  knows,  and  of  consequence 
adopts  and  executes,  the  wisest  measures  for  glorifying  him- 
self. It  is  contradicted  too,  by  the  experience  of  the  wise 
and  the  virtuous  part  of  the  community,  in  all  parts  and  all 
ages  of  the  world.     The  result  of  all   this   experience,  even 


306  SERMON  XX. 

to  the  end  of  the  world,  the  prescience  of  Jesus  Christ  has 
anticipated,  and  left  on  record,  in  the  memorable  saying — 
"  it  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive."  And  he  is  the 
more  easily  credited  in  this  paradox,  as  it  was  explained  by 
him  in  giving  his  glory  and  his  life  in  sacrifice,  as  a  ransom 
for  the  wretched  and  the  lost.  Here  then,  is  your  standard 
for  the  value  of  life  ;  and  being  virtuous  and  happy  in  pro- 
portion as  we  approximate  it ;  and  our  life  being  valuable, 
in  proportion  to  cur  facilities  for  approaching  the  measure 
of  the  stature  of  his  fullness  of  beneficent  action  towards 
mankind  ;  how  do  our  obligations  swell  and  rise  as  we  ad- 
vance in  the  illustration  ?  For  look  abroad  over  the  world  : 
survey  the  mass  of  human  ignorance,  superstition,  degrad- 
ing servitude,  and  misery,  and  see  what  an  unbounded  field 
for  such  effort,  the  exercise  of  such  virtuej  and  the  use  of 
such  privilege,  remains  to  us  and  the  following  generations, 
before  the  empire  of  truth  and  happiness  shall  have  become 
universal.  That  it  mU  become  so,  and  by  the  agency  of  man 
too,  is  certain.  The  zeal  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts  is  pledged  to 
such  an  issue.  Though  the  work  be  but  begun,  it  is  begun 
to  the  complete  exposure  of  their  folly,  who,  half  a  century 
ago  pronounced  idle  and  visionary  both  the  object — the  illu- 
mination and  conversion  of  the  world — and  the  means  pro- 
posed for  its  accomplishment.  Three  hundred  stations,  dis- 
tant as  the  poles,  designated  for  the  site  of  religious  missions  ; 
a  thousand  witnesses  for  Christ  proclaiming  thence  the  glad 
tidings  of  salvation  ;  among  them,  four  hundred  preachers 
converted  to  Christ,  and  themselves  preaching  the  faith, 
which,  according  to  the  predictions  of  unbelief,  they  could 
not  be  made  either  to  understand  or  to  receive  ;  fort}' thousand 
souls  discioled  cordially  to  Christianity  from  the  various  pa- 
gan tribes;  and  two  hundred  thousand  children  redeemed  from 
the  pupilage  of  idolaters,  and  training  up  to  disseminate  the 
principles  of  truth,  and  to  scatter  the  seeds  of  wisdom  among 


SERMON  XX.  SOI 

their  barbarous  countrymen  ;  and  forty  printing  presses,  ac- 
tively engaged  on  the  very  fields  claimed  by  antichrist  as 
all  his  own,  now  scaling  the  ramparts  and  demolishing  the 
bulwarks  of  ignorance  and  sin  ;  these,  these  arc  the  testimo- 
nials to  the  truth  that  the  work  is,  with  rational  expectation 
of  success,  commenced  ;  and  unambiguous  exhibitions  of  the 
value  of  the  judgment  and  foresight  of  sages  and  the  learned — 
of  the  worth  and  tendency  of  the  opinions  and  effects  of  un- 
belief! Where  is  the  wise,  where  is  the  scribe,  where  the  dis- 
puter  of  this  world  ;  hath  not  God  made  foolish  the  wisdom 
of  this  world?  And  where  is  the  band  of  faithless,  and  conse- 
quent^ inactive,  or  opposing  hearts,  who  heard  the  com- 
mand— "  Go  preach  my  gospel  to  every  creature,"  and 
never  so  much  as  inquired  after  the  means  of  executing  the 
great  commission  ?  Gone,  beloved  hearers!  by  thousands, 
to  the  judgment  seat  of  him  who  sealed  that  commission  with 
his  blood  ;  there  to  answer  for  disregarding  the  authority 
which  signed  it,  or  regarding  it  only  as  worthy  the  attention 
of  fishermen,  and  their  enthusiastic  followers  ;  and  we  are 
left  to  fill  up  what  was  lacking  in  the  labors  of  all  those  who 
have  gone  before  us.  Brethren  !  what  a  privilege  is  ours  ! 
The  living,  the  living,  shall  -praise  thee,  O  !  thou  Preserver 
of  men,  and  Lawgiver,  as  well  as  Saviour,  of  the  world,  as 
we  do  this  day. 

The  work,  I  have  said,  though  sure  of  accomplishment, 
is  but  begun.  At  home,  the  very  fount  of  knowledge — the 
word  of  God — is  in  some  of  these  christian  republics,  in  the 
houses  of  but  one  quarter  of  the  families  which  make  their 
population  ;  and  without  this,  man  is  but  the  slave  of  hope- 
lessness, and  ignorance,  and  sin  ;  an  heir  to  perpetual  mis- 
chief and  misery,  without  a  mitigating  or  alleviating  circum- 
stance in  his  condition.  In  the  whole  of  the  South  American 
Empire,  Asia,  Africa,  and  many  parts  of  Europe,  (he  Bible 
as  in  far  fewer  hands.     And  out  of  the  eight  hundred  million* 


302  SERMON  XX. 

of  the  world's  inhabitants,  a  fourth  part  only  are  nominally 
christian  :  and  of  these  you  will  remark,  not  less  than  one 
hundred  thousand  are  indebted  for  whatever  of  civilization 
and  christian  privilege  they  enjoy,  to  modern  missions.  The 
reward  is  liberal  indeed,  for  the  time  and  the  stinted  exer- 
tions of  the  christian  nations. 

But  consider  a  moment  some  of  the  facilities  for  aug- 
menting both  the  exertions,  and  the  sources  of  pleasure  and 
profit  to  mankind,  even  with  little  labour  ;  and  of  effecting 
extensive  good  by  small  means,  in  a  short  life.  And  this  too, 
not  as  in  times  gone  by,  by  one  halj  the  species  only  :  for 
it  is  a  peculiar  feature  of  the  age,  that  this  sphere  of  useful- 
ness is  enlarged  to  admit  that  sex,  and  those  youth  of  both 
sexes,  whose  labors  and  whose  influence  were  formerly  lim- 
ited to  the  narrow  circle  of  the  school  room  and  the  walks 
of  domestic  life.  Now  they  are  fellow-laborers  with  us,' in 
all  the  extent  of  the  household  of  God.  Hezekiah,  and  the 
men  of  his  age  of  kindred  mind,  had  almost  every  thing  val- 
uable to  accomplish  by  personal  assiduity,  device,  and  en- 
terprize.  Even  the  Apostles  of  Jesus  Christ,  were  little 
more  encouraged  by  finding  associates  in  their  labors.  If 
they  wished  the  gospel  to  be  preached  in  Italy  or  Spain,  or 
Gaul,  or  among  the  Islands,  they  themselves  were  to  be  the 
missionaries.  Did  they  deem  it  their  duty  to  publish  and 
scatter  it — they  must  see  it  transcribed  with  pen  and  ink  j 
and  transported  perhaps  from  one  Province  or  Colony  to 
another,  on  their  own,  or  the  shoulders  of  their  friends.  In 
our  time  three  thousand  Bible  Societies,  with  as  little  labor 
as  was  then  demanded  for  a  few  copies,  place  hundreds  of 
thousands  at  the  disposal  of  the  benevolent;  and  they,  by  a 
word's  speaking,  and  the  avails  of  a  few  days'  personal 
labor,  spread  them  among  the  destitute  in  every  quar- 
ter of  the  globe.  In  their  day,  the  attempt  to  convert 
Jew   or   Gentile,    was    attended    with    both  difficult}''   and 


SERMON  XX.  36.3 

danger;  and  was  often  made  at  the  sacrifice  of  every 
temporal  comfort,  and  at  the  peril  of  life  itself.  To 
Jew  and  Gentile,  von  give  the  same  hopeful  means  of 
knowledge  and  salvation,  by  merely  laying  up  a  por- 
tion of  the  superfluous  products  of  your  industry,  as  God 
has  prospered  you  ;  and  following  it  to  its  destination  with 
your  persevering  and  cordial  supplications  for  the  wretched, 
and  for  them  who  have  volunteered  their  services  and  for- 
saken all,  to  tell  the  wretched,  words  by  which  they  and 
their  households  may  be  saved.  You  stand  upon  the  mar- 
gin of  3'our  own  peaceful  river,  where  goes  no  galley  with 
oars,  and  which  bears  to  you  upon  its  tide,  the  delicacies  of 
every  clime  ;  and  with  better  success  than  if  you  crossed  the 
Pacific  yourself,  may  rescue  an  hundred  children,  on  the 
banks  of  the  Ganges,  from  a  watery  grave ;  or  a  burning  wid- 
ow from  the  funeral  pile  of  her  husband.  With  only  the 
heart  of  an  Apostle,  or  the  spirit  of  Dorcas,  you  instruct  a 
generation  who  know  not  God,  ten  thousand  miles  distant, 
without  leaving  your  fire  sides,  or  yielding  one  social  enjoy- 
ment ;  and  talk,  in  the  person  of  some  friend  or  acquaint- 
ance of  your  own  State,  to  an  hundred  idolaters  in  the  South- 
ern Ocean,  of  the  way  of  salvation ;  their  hearts  burning 
within  them,  and  the  tears  of  penitence  and  gratitude  bedew- 
ing their  furrowed  cheeks,  as  he  walks  with  them  by  the 
way,  and  opens  to  them  the  scriptures,  on  the  beach  beneath 
the  Palm,  or  within  the  posts  of  their  ruder  sanctuary.  And 
all  this,  it  is  your  enviable  privilege  to  do,  without  diminish- 
ing your  power  to  enjoy  for  yourself  the  fullness  of  the  bless- 
ing of  the  gospel  of  peace — without  endangering  your  liber- 
ty, your  life,  or  even  your  competence. 

And  when  you  would  warn  the  wicked  on  your  shores,  or 
send  pungent  conviction  to  the  heart  of  the  God-defying 
sailor  on  the  seas,  who  exposes  his  spiritual  as  well  as  natur- 
al life,  to  protect  or  accumulate  property  for  you  ;  instead  o( 


304  SERMON  XX. 

travel  .mg  over  the  country,  or  traversing  the  ocean,  you  ac~ 
complish  your  object  without  any  painfulness  of  rebuke,  or 
hearing  of  blasphemies,  by  means  of  some  of  those  thou- 
sands of  silent  but  insinuating  messengers  of  mercy,  ever 
ready  at  your  order  to  speak  to  him  in  God's  name,  to  judge 
him  out  of  his  own  mouth,  and,  like  a  true  Prophet,  to  say 
to  him,    "  thou  art   the  man." 

Such  are  the  facilities  God  has  given,  and  in  our  spared 
life  renewed  to  us,  for  pleading  the  cause  of  mercy,  and  do- 
ing homage  to  truth,  and  at  the  same  time  most  effectually 
doing  good  to  man.  Thus  it  is  too,  men  of  the  most  ordi- 
nary endowments  and  humble  gifts,  or  woman,  or  child, 
needs  only  to  know  the  day  of  visitation  and  what  the  Lord 
our  God  requires,  to  be  great  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
The  least  of  us  is  enabled  to  act  upon  a  greater  intellectual 
and  moral  surface  from  year  to  year,  than  even  an  Apostle j 
and  the  poor  widow,  guided  by  God,  and  under  the  influence 
of  a  prayerful  spirit,  may  accomplish  more  good,  than  the 
wealthiest  and  the  wisest  Jew,  in  the  earlier  days  of  benevo- 
lent christian  enterprize.  What  is  not  life  worth,  my  breth- 
ren !  under  such  auspicious  circumstances?  One  fervent 
prayer,  with  corresponding  action,  accomplishes  now  the  ob- 
ject, formerly  possible  only  to  an  age  of  miracles.  And  as 
the  day  draws  on,  in  which  the  mystery  of  God  and  of  sin 
are.  to  be  finished,  and  the  glory  of  the  church  and  of  its 
Leader  to  be  consummated,  every  hour  of  our  life  will  be- 
come more  and  more  valuable ;  every  thought  and  deed  ' 
more  important,  and  influential  on  the  soul's  eternal  destiny, 
and  pregnant  with  great  and  glorious,  or  deadly  conse- 
quences to  one-'s-self  and  to  mankind.  Let  us  each  give 
glory  to  God,  then,  and  excite  others  to  praise  him,  not  in 
word  and  in  tongue  only,  but  in  deed  and  in  truth,  that  by 
his  gracious  forbearance  he  has  come  in  view   of  the  king- 


SERMON  XX.  3Q5 

dom  at  such  a  time  as  this ;  and  is  still  allowed  to  act  ac- 
cording to  his  own  pleasure  in  its  behalf. 

And  now,  to  conclude  the  illustration  and  to  enforce  the 
duty  of  such  praises,  (for  such  only  are  God's  delight,)  let 
me  say  to  you  beloved  hearer  !  of  all  these  privileges  and 
facilities  for  doing  good,  and  for  the  spared  life  which  in- 
volves them  all,  you  must  render  an  account  to  God.  I  may 
have  set  before  you  truths  with  which  you  have  no  fellow- 
ship, and  obligations  to  the  praises  of  Jehovah,  for  what 
some  of  you  deem  an  unwelcome  duty.  But  to  be  spared 
one's  life  for  such  purposes,  is  a  proof  of  God's  love  to  our 
souls ;  because  death  terminates  the  opportunity  to  execute 
them.  And  those  whose  consciences  tell  them  that  such  are 
not  their  desires ;  that  their  lives  are  not  to  be  voluntarily 
employed  in  doing  good,  but  in  exerting  an  influence,  per- 
sonal or  domestic,  civil  or  religious,  adverse  to  the  interests 
of  Christ's  kingdom  ;  have  cause  to  fear  that  God  has  pro- 
longed their  lives,  that  they  may  fill  up  the  measure  of  their 
iniquity  ;  and  complete  the  demonstration  that  they  are  unfit 
for  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Hezekiah's  life  was  preserved  in  answer  to  his  prayers ; 
and  thus  it  was  God's  gift  and  deserving  of  praise.  But  to 
them  whose  life  has  been  given  them  for  a  prey  without  their 
asking,  it  is  an  indication  of  their  unfitness  for  death ;  and 
an  exercise  of  forbearance  which  seems  to  say — give  glory  to 
its  Preserver,  by  making  all  possible  advantage  of  the  present 
respite.  The  obligation  to  do  thus  is  founded,  not  on  the 
distinction  between  christians  and  unbelievers,  but  on  that 
between  the  living  and  the  dead.  The  living,  the  living, 
they  shall  praise  thee  ;  and  sing  my  song  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord  forever.  What  is  his  errand  into  the  world,  who 
neither  comes  to  scatter  blessings  among  others,  nor  is  en- 
gaged to  secure  his  own  salvation  ?  Will  he  hope  for  God's 
truth  in  the  grave  ?  Will  he  make  known  his  righteousness 
39 


306  SERMON  XX. 

to  his  children,  when  the  worm  is  feeding  on  him ;  or  triumph 
in  the  thought,  that  the  Lord,  in  his  life  time,  was  ready 
to  save,  but  he  had  no  faith  in  his  truth  ? 

And  now,  beloved  hearers  !  having  made  known  your  ob- 
ligations to  the  loving-kindness  of  the  Lord,  and  to  sing  his 
praises  in  his  house — let  me  propose  the  inquiry,  as  you  rise 
to  give  the  answer,  and  depart  every  man  to  his  own  house — 
will  you  devote  the  soul  redeemed  by  blood,  and  the  life 
ransomed  from  the  grave  by  almighty  power,  to  yourselves  ; 
or  yield  the  soul,  so  vast  in  its  capacity,  and  the  remnant 
of  a  life  so  comprehensive  of  privilege,  to  God  the  Redeemer 
of  the  one,  and  of  the  other  the  acknowledged  Preserver  ? 


^w 


